Nemea Five, the fifth member of the Machine Committee, was currently in Megacorp's territory.
The reason he, one of the rulers of Star Union, came here in person was because of the Great Leader's orders.
In conjunction with Megacorp, the task is to subdue an unidentified creature called 'Special Target A'.
Forces that had been hostile for a long time came together to capture just one animal.
Of course, if you look at what Special Objective A did, it is difficult to regard it as a single living thing. This is because the entity has a record of destroying the 11th member, Pyrrha Eleven, and destroying an elite fleet.
The fleet can be restored quickly, but the Supreme Council cannot. Most of the data was lost, except for some knowledge that Pyrrha Eleven had backed up. One of the pillars supporting Star Union was shaken.
Therefore, the Machinery Committee put its utmost effort into this subjugation operation. In addition to linking up with Megacorp, a large army and a total of three top members were dispatched to command it. The size of the punitive force sent by Star Union was such that it could easily be called an expedition force.
But now, dozens of minutes after the battle began, Nemea Five realized.
The Mechanical Committee made a wrong decision.
"I request Anders! You're under siege by metallic gremlins! Please apply right away!" "Sashabi reports! The creature that Special Target A is carrying suddenly… Ugh!" "A monster that cannot be detected by the detection system… Save me! "Kwaaaa, it's crazy." "Looking at Mr. Gesta…it's crazy." "Suddenly."
A citadel of machines with no traces of life, an XAX01-class battleship.
The ship's ruler, Nemea Five, was sitting on a rough metal throne, sorting out urgent communications coming from all directions.
It wasn't like this just a few minutes ago.
Special Objective A was caught in a trap prepared by Megacorp's CEO, and the deformed Gallagon he was carrying was fatally injured. The damage suffered by the fleet in the process of getting there was considerable, but it was within the allowable range.
As time passes, it is the punitive force that becomes more advantageous. The top committee members judged that it was beneficial to continue the operation as is.
But this too was a misjudgment. The situation changed in an instant. Now even the Supreme Council members could not predict the fate of the battle.
So you have to make a decision here. The Nemea Five sent a message to their old colleagues.
"Nemea Five. Report the damage status." "Red Tail Eight." 55% loss rate for Fleet 8. Command problems occurred due to communication problems. It is predicted that the loss rate will reach 60% within 3 minutes and 21 seconds." "Carlion Eleven." Fleet 11. Loss rate calculated at 72%. "The level of destruction has been reached."
The current loss rate of Fleet 5, commanded by Nemea Five, is 31%. Although the loss rate was relatively low, it was meaningless because the 8th and 11th fleets that came with it suffered significant damage.
In particular, the newly produced Carlion Eleven, which replaced the destroyed Pyrrha Eleven, was still very immature. Although he had the same knowledge and physical skills as other members, he lacked the ability to deal with the situation.
"Nemea Five. As a result of calculating the probability of operation failure, it reached 71%. "I judge that it is necessary to retreat immediately." "Red Tail Eight." denial. The Mechanical Committee requested that we retreat when an 80% probability is achieved." "Carlion Eleven." "We request an analysis from the Mechanical Committee."
Red Tail expressed opposition to Nemea Five's opinion, and Carlion was unable to present an independent opinion.
"Nemea Five. denial. Before the analysis results are released, the probability that Fleet 8 will enter the destruction phase is calculated to be 67%. You have to make a decision before that to reduce the loss rate." "Red Tail Eight." Some positives. I agree with the opinion that a decision must be made before the 8th Fleet is destroyed. However, deciding to retreat within 5 minutes is against the decision of the Mechanical Committee." "Carlion Eleven." Difficult to analyze. "We request an analysis from the Mechanical Committee."
Nemea Five twitched his fingers ever so slightly at Red Tail's stubborn attitude and Carlion Eleven's mechanical response.
"Nemea Five. There are concerns about damage to the Supreme Council if the operation continues. The safety of the members who participated in the operation must be prioritized." "Red Tail Eight." Some denial. The current Supreme Council model has been improved. "Unless a special variable occurs, the probability of a loss of a member is only 11%."
Isn't the situation like this because that particular variable is continuing to occur?
An unfamiliar sensation that had never been felt before flashed in Nemea Five's mind and then disappeared.
Just as I was about to realize that it was an emotion called 'impatience,' a message was delivered to Nemea's head.
After confirming the contents of the message, Nemea immediately shared the information with the committee members.
"Nemea Five. Confirmation of large-scale energy reaction within the N-51 star system." "Carlion Eleven." question. Are they reinforcements? ｣ ｢Nemea Five. denial. As a result of energy response analysis, it was confirmed that five anti-planetary weapons manufactured by Saint Kay are preparing to enter. " Red Tail Eight." question. Megacorp suggested that it would not deploy anti-planetary weapons in this operation. Is this false?" "Nemea Five." denial. It was confirmed that the corresponding planetary weapons voluntarily came to support after receiving a rescue signal sent from a Megacorp ship." "Carlion Eleven." question. Estimated time of arrival? ｣ ｢Nemea Five. "It is estimated to take less than 10 minutes."
Intrusion of undiscussed reinforcements.
And these are not ordinary ships, but five anti-planetary weapons, Giga Crackers, are suddenly trying to enter here.
The firepower of five Giga Crackers is enough to wipe out not only Special Target A but also the entire Star Union fleet here. From their perspective as the most powerful people in Star Union, this was a very suspicious act.
"Nemea Five. I again suggest canceling the operation." "Red Tail Eight." To agree. We retreat one by one, starting with the ships whose communication functions have been restored." "Carlion Eleven." To agree."
The 'occurrence of special variables' mentioned by Red Tail.
With that, the failure of the operation was decided.
–
Akira mutated into a form resembling Amorph.
It changed the small arms on its chest, fighting arms, and tail to different shapes. The fighting arm changed into a blunt warhammer shape, and the smaller arm became a clawed arm. The tail had a mouth with a pointed appendage at the end, like a tentacle.
I used the perk to randomly change body parts and the perk to imitate myself at the same time.
[Zuzu zuzu zuzu zuzuzu (Any other perks other than that?)] ｢Life support, there is a perk, uh.｣ [Zuzu zuzu (Life support?)] ｢If you have a special organ, you won't die at any time, no. Even if the head and heart are gone."
As he said, even though his head was blown off, he had no problem moving at all.
'Is this a similar mechanism to Vortex One?'
Because they won't die unless you destroy the part called the Avital Core.
'Then what happens to genetic essence predation?'
It's unclear whether you can eat its head like other living things, or whether you have to eat its life support organs like the Vortex One.
'Should I eat it and check for myself?'
However, there is one issue to consider before feasting on it.
'Akira can contaminate genes.'
If you hastily eat its body, there is a high chance of falling into a trap like when you ate its shadow. Regardless of its special organs or head, the moment I eat its meat, my body will become greatly weakened.
'They say it will return to its original state over time.'
In the heat of battle, becoming weaker than you are now is fatal. Risk factors should be reduced as much as possible before eating.
'In the end, there is only one answer.'
Making Akira unable to move for a while. The head and special organs must be targeted after neutralizing it.
I spread my wings and sprinted towards Akira. It also spread its wings wide and faced me.
And then a strong shock shook my head. A massive hammer-like arm crushed my horn and lodged itself inside my skull. At the same time, my auxiliary organ surrounded by bone blades pierced its leg. In that state, he started to push his staked fighting arm into my head.
I opened my mouth and stuck out my double chin. The power of the double jaw is strong enough to crush the Magmasaur's outer shell. The moment the jaws were about to bite the guy's abdomen mercilessly, the clawed arms that had moved to the chest moved.
｢Pain reduction activated!｣
Along with the sharp pain, the taste of blood spread into my mouth. He cut off his double-chinned tongue with his claws.
The guy pulled out the arm that was stuck in his head and hit me like a slap on the muzzle. My neck was bent to the side against my will, and my body was pushed back significantly. If this were on a planet, I would have put my head on the ground in an unsightly manner.
He smiled with his teeth exposed, probably thinking the same thing as me. I also laugh like that when I succeed in hunting, and it felt strange to see someone else do that.
At that time, a large pink tentacle flew into its side. Akira quickly covered his body with wings that were much larger than before and defended against No. 26's attack.
However, No. 26 also seems to have expected that the opponent would block it this time. In its second attack, a web of concentrated psychic power exploded at the enemy. The amount was so enormous that it was close to twice the energy consumed by the psychic breath.
｢Don't imitate the older kids!｣
No. 26, who pressures Akira with enormous power beyond that of the Sea Demon. Instead of blocking with his wings, Akira responded by switching body parts this time. When the horns protruding from its head touched the psychic power, the energy scattered in all directions.
'Horn of Gallagon.'
It broke free of its restraints with its horn, which had the effect of tearing up the energy field, and attempted to bite off No. 26's tentacles. The intention is to imitate the appearance of No. 26, a special Sea Demon.
'I can't leave it like that.'
I rotated my body sharply and swung my tail wildly. The one that tried to hit No. 26 was hit by the pincer at the end of its tail and flew away.
Before long, it stopped itself by spreading the membranes on its wings. All other parts were fine, but the arms attached to the chest had been completely crushed by the pincers.
The guy casually tore off the damaged arms with his teeth. After a while, two arms with long bone blades appeared in its place. It looks exactly like the arm with the bone scythe that appears when hunting.
Instead of charging at him, I turned around. The guy was following closely behind me, who seemed to be giving up.
A turquoise beam of light shot out from the end of its tail and hit my back. It was similar to the particle beam fired by Crystal Wing, but its power was much stronger due to its higher output.
Every time it was hit by a beam of light, its armor fell off and a large wound appeared. As I was unable to recover, the number of small wounds on my body increased.
The one who destroyed my carapace with particle rays accelerated and climbed on top of my body. Then he plunged his arm with the bone knife into my wound and dug out pieces of flesh.
｢Pain reduction activated!｣ 'Ugh!'
Dizzying pain comes from ruptured muscles and torn flesh. At the same time, the enemy's emotions can be felt as the blade mercilessly pierces the wound. Akira takes pleasure in torturing me.
The perks he possesses have excellent synergy with each other. Because of that, even though he imitates Amorph, he is overwhelming me and the kids.
'You must be thinking…'
It's true that it's powerful, but it's not enough to completely overwhelm me like it does now.
There is a reason why I 'acted out' my helpless running away. It's about luring him to a specific place.
Strong energy reactions can be felt not far away. The heat rays fired by the battleships get closer.
And one of them hit my back, Akira to be exact.
Could it be that the aiming devices on the battleships were broken due to the psychic power unleashed by No. 26? The guy is embarrassed.
But that wasn't a mistake. All of the heat rays that flew in next hit Akira. It fell from my body to avoid the barrage of plasma.
As it fell, the heat rays fired by the battleship's main guns split into two. The targets the battleships were aiming for were him and me.
Akira is shocked when he sees that. He realized what he was like.
'Now I can't even transform.'
Even my enemies know that I can change my body and fight at will. Even if he were to transform into something other than Amorph, those warships wouldn't be suspicious.
Even if he left information about his transformation abilities with the fleet commanders, the same would apply. Due to communication instability due to No. 26's psychic power and the 'Messenger of Chaos' I used, the enemy's connection has become very vulnerable. In this situation, smooth communication cannot be expected.
[Zuzuzu zu (idiot)] ｢■■■■■■!｣
I bared my teeth at him and jumped into where the enemy ships were gathered. The guy who saw me laughing let out a roar of anger and chased after me.
The chase resumed amid heat rays raining down from all directions. However, the aspect was very different from before.
The guy who had overwhelmed me with speed just a moment ago was now barely keeping up with the tip of my tail. I can't use my skills properly because I have to avoid the rain of plasma, which is as thick as my body.
'As expected, his defense power is lower than mine.'
Its size is only 10m. Even if the shell material is the same as mine, the thickness is thin, so there is bound to be a difference in defense power. When you are hit by a battleship's main gun, you are the one who suffers more damage, not me.
One guy has an auxiliary organ with superior performance. His eyes disappeared, mimicking the appearance of his clone, but a sensing organ appeared under his chin to replace them.
Just like me, he is also using his auxiliary organs to easily avoid the attacks of battleships. Of course, I haven't been able to use it properly yet, perhaps because it's an unfamiliar feeling.
'You'll get used to it over time.'
So, we have to see the outcome before that.
In the middle of a chaotic battlefield with numerous ships and metallic gremlins, I dove into the group of ships. When the distance from the ship became reasonably close, I spit out the MPS-05 that I had put in my mouth and held it in my hand.
I'm thinking of using 'clever acronym' here, so I left it out in advance.
When I activated the trait, my body shrank extremely. The elongated necks and huge wings became smaller and then disappeared altogether, and the body shape was completely changed.
By the end of my transformation, my body had grown to about 5 meters in size. A four-legged centaur-like body shape and fur covering the entire body are all typical characteristics of a clever underdog.
Transformed into a clever underdog, I clung to the bottom of a nearby ship. Akira, who had been following me, looked embarrassed when I suddenly disappeared.
You might be able to find me if you stand still and focus on your auxiliary organs, but you probably won't. This is a chaotic battlefield. In a space where all kinds of irritating elements are mixed together, it is not easy for him to find just me.
'It would be even more so if I were smaller.'
Warships everywhere were targeting Akira. The ship I was clinging to also pointed its main guns at the fake Aimorph, or rather, at its own master.
After challenging the enemies, I climbed the outer wall of the ship to find a 'suitable spot'. At the same time, I called out to my alter ego, 'Right Head', who was still fighting on the battlefield.
At that time, a battleship that was only about 100 meters away from me exploded after being hit by a blue-green beam. Akira's anger reached its peak and he started shooting particle rays at the subordinates he had brought with him.
'also.'
The third place player often got caught up in my distraction tactics in the game and attacked his fellow teammates. It seems like I've been in this world for a long time, but I don't think I've been able to fix that part.
'Thanks to you, I'm happy.'
While he was paying attention to something else, I settled down in a suitable spot. And just then, an alter ego appeared near Akira.
Akira, like me, recognized the existence of the right side of his head. Its head is bent to the side depending on the direction the auxiliary organ is facing. And immediately, a particle beam was fired at the right side of the head.
My alter ego with a hole in its chest after being hit by a beam of light. Akira flew like a flash sword and plunged his arm with the bone knife into the clone's wound.
Blood gushes out like a fountain and the clone's body goes limp. The guy who smiles when he sees that.
Then, the guy stops. Probably because I realized something was wrong.
The clone he attacked was a decoy.
As soon as the right head appeared, I prepared to snipe Akira. And the fruit just left my body.
An ominously glowing chaos orb rolls around. Because he is a smart underdog, his power has been greatly reduced, but it doesn't matter. In fact, the size of the bullet is reduced, so it is more advantageous when shooting secretly like now.
A bullet filled with malice gets closer to its target. Akira senses this and turns his head.
It protected itself with its wings just as it did when it defended itself against No. 26's attack. If it had been a different attack, it would have been a good decision, but not now.
That's because the attack I fired was a psychic breath imbued with the 'color of the abyss.'
A small bead hits the wing and shatters. The chaotic colors contained within flowed out and wetted the film.
｢?!｣
The psychic breath began to rapidly gnaw away at the wings. The bastard was embarrassed and cut off its wings. In the process, ominous colored bubbles moved to other areas.
Psychic breath with the color of the abyss continuously eats away at organic matter until it disappears. The only way for him to get out of this is to remove all of the foamy areas.
'That means it will be neutralized until then.'
I kicked hard against the outer wall of the ship with all four feet. My body shot up like a bullet leaving the barrel of a gun.
He also found me flying as fast as a bullet. It moved its tail to intercept me with a particle beam, but the tail also lost its function due to the bubbles. The speed of gathering energy has decreased significantly.
｢■■■■!｣
Akira belatedly realizes how to break the bubble and tries to separate the tail.
One is too late.
'This is the end.'
He knows now too. That there is nothing that can stop me here.
I shook my head violently. The bone blade growing under the chin moved along the snout and decapitated the creature.
A disgusting head, clumsily imitating Aimov's, floats in the air. A hybrid that has lost its head is moving its arms and legs and flapping them.
I reached out and grabbed Akira's head.
'After this…'
It's time to find out where the special organ that sustains life is.
The moment I thought that, an image blocked my path.
You can see five giant spaceships that look like neatly peeled tangerine peels or flower buds in full bloom.
Soon, the large turret located in the center of the spaceships began to move. Just as a blue-green flame was about to rise from the end, the image was cut off. At the same time, a strong shock came over my body.
A Megacorp ship hovering nearby hit me. The impact caused me to fly a long distance and land on the wreckage of a broken ship.
'What did you just do?'
There are not many cases where an image is visible to the eye while the symbol of hunting is maintained. One of them is when my predator senses alert me to danger.
'It was definitely 5 Gigacrackers.'
The image was interrupted midway due to the impact on my body, but it was clear.
Super weapons that exist somewhere in this star system.
They are preparing an offensive.
-x-X-x-
'This is not the time to be like this.'
I quickly pulled myself out of the wreckage of the ship.
5 minutes at most? The attack of 5 Giga Crackers will begin within a few minutes.
Currently, I have fallen into Akira's trap and my recovery ability has been sealed. If it were me now, even if just one Gigacracker fired its ion cannon, I would be mortally wounded. If 5 ships attack at the same time, you are guaranteed to die.
'But it's also impossible to intercept.'
We've countered imperial carriers before, but the situation is very different now. The effect of the symbol of hunting is only a few minutes away, and 'King of Monsters' is no longer available.
So there is only one option to choose now. All I have to do is leave this place right now.
'Wait a minute, before that…'
Unlike me, Akira, whose head was cut off, did not collide with the ship. Then it will remain there.
I checked on the incapacitated Akira using auxiliary organs. It stayed where I hit it, floating motionless.
'good. It's okay… huh?'
But something was strange.
The guy who was running wild when his head was cut off is now completely motionless. Like a dead body.
'What happened?'
It has a special organ that sustains life, so it does not die even if its head is cut off. In fact, Isabel blew the guy's head off, but he quickly came back to life.
'I need to go closer and check.'
I immediately dismissed 'clever underdog'. The body rapidly grew larger, and the body shape returned to its original shape.
As his body grew larger, Akira's head and the inactive MPS-05 he was holding became smaller than his fingernails. The mini screamer was put back in the mouth, and the head was carefully held in the small arms on the chest.
In that state, it spread its wings and flew near Akira's body.
When I got closer and checked, it was clear that his condition was not normal. The wound around the severed neck was wide open and empty inside. Internal organs were completely gone, and only a small amount of bone and flesh remained.
'It's not the color of the abyss.'
Psychic breath strengthened with the 'color of the abyss' eats up any organic object. Do not gnaw only the inside flesh instead of the outside.
'Something inside pulled itself out.'
Looking at the torn neck area, there was evidence that an object estimated to be approximately 60 to 70 cm had crawled out from the inside. It's as if a person wearing a doll mask has taken off his clothes.
'Is this a life support perk?'
I thought it might be a special organ that sustains life, such as the heart or a general organ. Now that I look at it, I think I misjudged.
'Is it its own body, or an organ that plays a similar role as the main body?'
On the contrary, what was thought to be Akira's body should be viewed not as a body but as biological armor. I never imagined there would be this type of perk.
'If you had used this, you could have taken me by surprise, so why?'
It's strange that the guy who laid all kinds of traps to catch me missed a good opportunity.
'Or did you not do it?'
Looking back, Akira did not abandon his fake body even when he was mistaken for an Amorph or attacked by the colors of the abyss. If I had this ability, I would just have to escape from my main body and create a new body.
That means that when there is only the main body, it becomes weak.
'Or that it takes time to create a new body after escaping.'
At least when fighting me, it is clear that the real body and the fake body cannot be separated.
'Once I dumped the fake body here, the main body will be here somewhere.'
I abandoned my fake body, which was being engulfed by the colors of the abyss, and looked around with my auxiliary organs.
The battlefield, where heat waves, torpedoes, and ships were fiercely moving back and forth just a moment ago, is now much quieter. There were still ships fighting the metallic gremlins, but there were not many of them.
Except for the few ships left here, the rest of the ships were already far away. Star Union's warships were not even visible at all. It was clear that everyone was retreating to avoid Gigacracker's offensive.
'There's no one here.'
Even though I searched the area, I couldn't find any sign of him. While I crashed into the boat and was pushed away, he escaped on another boat. It's probably hiding somewhere among the ships rushing away in the distance.
'Should I chase after him?'
Akira is the CEO of Megacorp. No matter how vicious and selfish the Megacorp humans are, it is not easy to fire an ion cannon where the top leader of the force is.
'The problem is if another ranker sent it.'
It is presumed that there are other rankers in Megacorp besides Akira. First of all, there are two strong candidates: the head of the Carmelda family and a researcher from the Prime Capital Zao family.
What if they prioritize killing me over the life of the CEO? I will die chasing Akira.
'You have to get out of here.'
In this battle, I exposed a lot of my cards. If I were to face them again, it would be a much more difficult fight than it is now.
However, chasing after him when 5 Giga Crackers have been taken out from the other side is too risky.
｢Big baby.｣
At that time, number 26 approached me. As if he had realized that the battle was coming to an end, his body had returned to its pink jellyfish-like appearance.
The animal was gently holding its injured 'right head' with the fin it used as a leg.
'You worked hard.'
When No. 26 let go, the clone approached him, bleeding profusely, and bowed his head.
｢It looks like it hurts a lot.｣ [zuzuzu zuzu zuzuzuzu (It's okay. It'll get better soon)] ｢Really?｣ [Zu (yes)]
It was split thanks to the 'Hydra Split', but this alter ego is no different from my original body part. I lightly touched the clone's head and immediately retrieved it.
"Aki, was that porridge?"
Isabelle, who was buried in the fin along with her clone, stuck out her head. I answered his question by shaking my head.
[Zuz zuzuzuzu (He ran away)] ｢You missed it? Could it be because of a special device or pipe?"
He also found Akira's empty shell floating in space. Since he saw that the inside was empty, he must have guessed what was going on.
[Zuzuzuzu Zuzuzu Zuzuzu Zuzu zu Zuzuzuzuzu Zuzuzu Zuzu Zuzuzu (Sorry, I'll explain later. The attack of the 5 Giga Crackers will begin soon)] ｢What?｣ [Zuzu (No. 26)]
Instead of explaining, I called number 26.
[Zuzuz, zuzu, zuzu, zuzuzu (I'm leaving here. Call the kids)] ｢Yes!｣
A strand of silver tentacle protruded from the body of the tangled tentacle. As the tentacles began to glow, the metallic gremlins scattered everywhere began to gather.
Among them was Warp Boy, a small silver demon with blue patterns on his body. I need their help to get out of here safely.
[Zuzuzu Zuzuzu Zuzuzu Zuzuzu Zuzu Zuzu Zuzuzu Zuzuzuzuzu Zuzuzu (Tell me to send them to different places, not the same place all at once)] ｢Why? Glitters are weak when they are alone."
I know that too. Because metallic gremlins become stronger when there are a lot of them.
However, there is a reason why they are asked to separate and move it.
"You're trying to avoid tracking."
Isabelle, who immediately realized my intention, sent a thought wave.
Every faster-than-light voyage leaves behind residual energy. The higher the amount of energy generated during navigation, the longer the maintenance time is.
And if you have equipment like a warp finder, you can track where a specific opponent jumped until the remaining energy is lost. Even if we leave this place together, the enemies and Gigacrackers will continue to pursue us.
'That's the only way to get rid of them.'
If you divide the group based on warp boys and send them on a super-light voyage to different locations, several traces will be left behind.
Here, rather than directly sailing at faster than light speeds, I plan to use the warp boy's ability to blend in with the leaping group.
If the enemy has recorded my energy signal, it is possible for them to follow me with the warp finder when I attempt to travel at faster than light speeds. To prevent this, I'm asking Warp Boy to move me.
I don't know exactly where I ran away, but there are several traces? They also have no choice but to worry about tracking them. Since I know the danger, it is not easy to split up my troops to pursue them. If you do that for no reason, you could be destroyed individually.
And while the enemies hesitate, the Metallic Gremlins and I can continue to attempt faster-than-light sailing to escape.
[Zuzuzuzu Zuzuzu Zuzuzuzu (I won't fight this time)] ｢You won't fight with bad guys?｣ [Zuzuzuzu Zuzuzuzu Zuzuzuzu (Yes, so they won't get hurt)]
In fact, if the enemy chose to split up their forces and pursue them, they would have no choice but to fight, but that was not mentioned.
"okay! I'll ask the glitters to move us!" [Z (yes)]
No. 26's silver tentacles sparkled again.
The warp boys saw this and prepared for faster-than-light sailing. As the blue tattoo on the silver background gave off a soft light, the bodies of the metallic gremlins gathered here and there, including me, also turned blue.
[Zuz zuzuzu (both come here)]
In case there was a problem while moving, I put Isabelle and No. 26 in my mouth.
When the blue light almost completely enveloped my body, I felt a very strong energy response from far away.
Energy generated at a distance so far that even my enhanced auxiliary organs cannot detect it is approaching at a very fast speed. This is a heat ray launched by Gigacracker.
Just before the enormous heat hit my body, the energy response disappeared in an instant. Instead, what I felt was a familiar pressure.
After a while, the pressure pressing down on my whole body disappeared. There were no giant turquoise heat rays or broken pieces of metal around. The only people in the dark space were me, the kids, and a few metallic gremlins.
'I succeeded.'
Just before being directly hit by the heat ray, escape through faster-than-light sailing was successful.
[Zuz zuzu zu zuzu zu (Can you tell me to move it one more time?)]
I asked No. 26 to have the warp boy who came with me use faster-than-light navigation again.
After that, the voyage was repeated several more times and crossed several star systems.
Even when the symbol of hunting applied to my body ended, there were no people pursuing us.
'It's over.'
A large-scale battle involving Megacorp, Star Union, and Dominant and Returned rankers.
It finally came to an end.
–
A pure white and clean room as if it were carved from marble.
At the center of the pathologically clean-looking space was a cylindrical tank with one side made of transparent glass. The tank is a rare facility installed only on some of Megacorp's ships.
And now Megacorp's CEO Akira Yujin is in it.
'くそ! (Shit!)'
As the tank filled with liquid, Akira barely suppressed his anger.
'あのくそモーフやろう! (Damn Amorph guy!)'
Aimov, the vicious 5th ranker who harassed him several times in the game.
He did everything he could to catch the guy. He captured the 4th rank that was in a hostile relationship, and borrowed various weapons and troops from other rankers of the ruling faction. If it were a game, he prepared so thoroughly that he would have won.
But the results were disastrous.
He lost most of his troops and weapons, and almost all of his privileges were exposed. He got away with it, and now he's wasting his time in this fucking tank.
"Well, Boo, is there anything that makes you uncomfortable?"
A man's voice was heard through my slowly regenerating ears. Akira looked out of the tank with one newly formed eye.
There was a man holding a captain's hat in his hand. I am the captain of this ship. Thanks to his quick rescue efforts, Akira was able to enter the tank safely.
"What happened to the target of the subjugation?"
Akira communicated with the captain through a chip connected to his head. The captain glanced at the monitor outside the tank and answered hesitantly.
"Well, since Gigacracker fired the ion cannon, he probably didn't die…" "You idiot!"
Akira, angry at his subordinate's stupid remark, hit the glass wall of the tank hard.
It's not for nothing that he didn't use a super weapon to capture Aimorph.
If there is a super weapon, it is difficult to freely operate troops on the battlefield. This is because if you are not careful, you may be caught in the attack of a super weapon.
Aimorph is a guy who is good at using his opponent's weapons against his enemy. Disguise it as if it died after being attacked by a super weapon, or steal it and use it to attack this side, etc. Even in games, there are more than one or two times when I brought a super weapon to fight against a guy and ended up getting the reverse.
Knowing that, we only used super weapons to a very limited extent during this subjugation operation.
"Hmm, the search is currently in progress! Joe, just wait a little longer and the search party will bring the results the CEO wants!" "It doesn't matter if it's a very small trace. Take anything with you, whether it's biological tissue or a piece of metal. "If you have attempted faster-than-light navigation, record all remaining energy." "I understand!"
The captain hurriedly bowed his head at the stern command of his enraged master.
｢And did you find out who called Giga Cracker?｣ "Well, the investigation is also underway! "It looks like someone involved in the operation has requested assistance, so it will be confirmed soon."
Although he didn't like any of the captain's words, Akira suppressed his anger.
Normally, I would have torn it to death with my bare hands, but I can't do that now.
He is currently in a weakened state that requires absolute rest in a special solution in a tank. Going out of the tank and trying to kill the captain will only delay the reconstruction of the body.
"Go away." "Yes, yes!"
The captain, reading Akira's discomfort, hurriedly left the room.
In the quiet tank, Akira thought about the person who called Gigacracker.
'I said I wouldn't use any super weapons other than Alpha Boy.'
However, someone disobeyed his orders and secretly sent a rescue request to Gigacracker. And that was at a time when Akira's defeat was deepening.
If it weren't for this ship, Akira would have been killed by the ion cannon.
'Are you really trying to kill me?'
Did another ranker try to take advantage of his weakened position? If that is true, there is a need for an immediate purge immediately after returning.
'I don't need them anymore anyway. To catch Amorph, you need more perks, so it's better here…'
At that time, I heard the door opening. A researcher wearing a white coat approached the tank.
"Adjustment is unnecessary, so go away."
This tank was designed by Akira. He knows best, so he doesn't need anyone else's coordination.
'huh?
The researcher did not leave despite Akira's order to congratulate the guests. He was looking at the tank with an unknown smile.
"Is it because my body has changed? Or is it because it's been a while since we last met? "Don't you remember me?" "what?"
A researcher who speaks as if he knows him well.
Akira was startled by that eerily familiar tone of voice.
｢く, くそ虎?(Ku, kusotora?)｣ "When you're embarrassed, Japanese still comes out first. That's amazing. "I'm not good at Korean, but my memory is good."
The identity of the researcher was someone Akira knew well.
'Shin Beom-ho', the leader of the returning faction and a strong man ranked 7th.
He now came to Akira with an unfamiliar face and a body of an unfamiliar species.
-x-X-x-
In a tank filled with a specially treated chemical solution, Akira glared at his archenemy whom he had not seen in a long time.
The last time I met Beom-ho was already decades ago.
The other person was very different from what he remembered. It's not just that they've gotten older, but the race itself has changed. This is because the young cult man is now a middle-aged researcher.
However, Akira quickly accepted his changes. Considering the perks that Beomho had, it wasn't particularly surprising.
"Why are you here? Could it be that you were targeting Amorph too?"
As far as he knew, Beomho was the ranker who targeted Amov the hardest in the game. In the community, there were many people who saw Beomho and Amorph as destined rivals.
It is a meaningless assumption because it is unlikely, but if Beomho and Akira had cooperated in this operation, they would have been able to kill Aimov.
However, Beomho's answer was different from Akira's expectations.
"The Empress thought so too, but she was wrong. I'm not here because of Eimoff. "It's to prevent you and him from fighting." "What?" "To be exact, that guy shouldn't die yet."
When Akira heard those words, a memory came to mind.
The plan I heard from him in the past, before my relationship with Beom-ho fell out.
"Foolish. That plan is impossible. "Nothing is impossible before human will." "It's absurd to say such a thing from your own mouth." "I'm disappointed that you're reacting like this when you saved my life in such a difficult way. "If Gigacracker hadn't come here, you would have been killed by him, right?"
Hearing Beomho's words, Akira clenched his teeth that had just begun to grow.
The person who called Giga Cracker was not a traitor, but Beom-ho.
Of course, this does not mean that there are no traitors within the ruling faction. I don't know when Beom-ho infiltrated Megacorp, but there was definitely someone who helped him.
To find out, you have to catch that man outside the tank.
"Is that the end of what you have to say?"
Akira has a secret weapon that he can use even when his body is weakened like it is now. The conditions for use were strict, so I couldn't use it when fighting Aimorph, but not now. With this ability, it is also possible to capture a tiger.
Deciding to overpower his opponent, he increased his power and the liquid in the tank began to shake.
"The plan went awry because of you. "You have to pay the price." "It's so messed up. Even in games, I lost every time. "You can't win against that guy."
Akira paused when he saw the other person's still calm appearance.
Akira is well aware of Beomho's abilities as they have worked together in the past. This also applies to tigers. There's no way he doesn't know how difficult Akira is.
However, the reason he shows this attitude is obviously because he is confident.
"Do you think I can't kill you?" "Well, you could tear me to death even in that condition." "Are you provoking me even though you know that?"
In front of the shaking tank, Beomho calmly raised his arms. His hand touched the glass wall of the tank.
"You always have that problem. Do you know why you can't beat him?" ｢What?｣ "You have a lot of things, but your imagination is so poor."
As soon as those words were finished, Beomho's eyes began to glow purple. The purple light that was in his eyes slowly moved down his face and onto his shoulders as if he had an ego.
Akira was shocked, knowing what that meant.
｢プレーヤーにもできるだと?くそ虎!僕をだましたんだな! (You can do this to players too? Kusotora! You fooled me!) "
Akira saw the light that had passed through his arm and reached his hand seeping into the glass wall, so he urgently activated his ability.
The target is not the tiger, but yourself. The liquid surrounding his body froze as if it had been rapidly cooled. The monitor connected to the tank and the lights illuminating the room blinked uneasily.
But the purple light was slightly faster than that. The light reached Akira's body before the liquid completely solidified. Then a purple line appeared between Akira and Beomho.
"Is it environmental change and the formation of a stationary field? "It's been a while since I last saw you."
Beomho withdrew his hand as he looked at the tank, which was greatly damaged by the hardened liquid.
"It will take some time to settle in, but I expected this. "I've prepared everything, so it'll be okay."
Since the 'ability' has been applied, Akira's 'body' is no different from being in his hands. Beomho smiled as he saw the thread becoming transparent.
"Don't worry. "I will leave when the time comes."
When the thread completely disappeared, Beom-ho's body collapsed onto the white floor like a doll whose thread had been cut.
A few minutes later, he woke up again.
"Ugh, the head…."
He was rubbing his temples and groaning, and he looked somewhat dazed compared to before he collapsed.
He slowly got up from his seat and looked at the tank in front of him.
"Why am I here…huh? "Huh?"
His complexion, which was looking at the tank with a blank expression, instantly turned white. He reached for the monitor in an urgent manner.
"Why did this suddenly become like this? Who would do something like this…damn it!"
After seeing the monitor that was not working, he hurried out of the room.
A white room filled with silence.
A purple light flashed and disappeared inside the damaged tank in the room.
–
[Zuzzuzu zuzu zuzu (There is no enemy chasing you, right?)] ｢Yes. "Bad metal won't follow you."
Number 26 answered my question by waving its silver tentacles.
I checked it last because the enemy could follow me even if it's too late. Fortunately, the enemy did not send a pursuit party, perhaps thinking of targeting Daum.
'It's been about an hour, so let's move on.'
The effects of the contaminated genes consumed by eating Akira's subordinates have long since ended. Thanks to this, recovery characteristics returned to normal.
'I'm worried about Aadhai too.'
Seeing that the symbiotic spores planted in it are still alive, it is clear that it is alive. However, it is difficult to determine exactly what state it is in because the distance is too far.
'Wait a minute, before I go….'
There is something I need to check.
I looked down at Akira's head, which he was holding in his small arms against his chest.
It was fine until an hour ago, but now it wasn't that good. It was noticeable that the hard-growing head carapace, resembling Aimorph's, had become mushy.
[Zuzuz, zuzuzu, zuzuzu, zuzu (You said there are no contaminated genes, right?)] ｢Yes. From what I can see, yes."
Isabelle, who received the request, said that she had checked with Manjang's Cheonan several times, but that no contaminated genes were found.
The abnormal rate of decomposition of the head seems to be Akira's special feature, that is, a characteristic of the fake body itself.
'After all, I have to eat before it's too late.'
Originally, I planned to wait until I could use the symbol of hunting. However, the condition of my head is rapidly deteriorating. You have to eat it before it gets damaged further.
'There is no guarantee that you can obtain the genetic essence anyway.'
What I'm holding is not Akira's real body, but just a part of his fake body. The predation effect may not be effective when consumed.
'It would be really disappointing if there was no compensation.'
I threw Akira's head into my mouth, hoping to get something.
When the teeth collided with the hard carapace, a short, strong cracking sound was heard, like chewing candy. The contents inside flowed down my tongue and down my throat. And the sweet and intense aroma, as if chocolate, caramel, and butter melted together in a hot frying pan, spread throughout my mouth.
'Well, it definitely tastes good….'
Just when I was trying to savor the taste and aroma that spread in an instant.
A translucent text box suddenly appeared in front of me.
"Predation effect activated! Successfully acquired the 'Hiveformer' genetic essence.｣ ｢Takeover 'Hiveformer' among the biological characteristics of 'Akira Eugene'.｣ ｢Do you want to apply 'Hiveformer'?｣
I almost screamed when I checked the contents of the text box.
'Hiveformer?'
Hiveformer is a general trait related to nests, and is a very good trait for races that can set up nests. It is evaluated as a semi-essential trait for outspacers who are highly dependent on the nest.
However, this characteristic is very difficult to obtain. This is because creatures with the characteristic are very rare.
'I thought we'd only see this when we attacked the solar system.'
I never expected that I would get it through Akira's head here.
"Big baby, smile! I guess it feels good because it's delicious!" "I think it's for a reason other than the taste."
Next to me, No. 26 and Isabel look at me and talk. I guess I was smiling and showing my teeth without realizing it.
I tried to calm my heart and looked at the text box again.
'The predation effect only appeared once, but this is a pretty good result.'
Hiveformer itself is a good trait, but what's even better is that this trait is one of the materials needed to create a unique trait.
｢'Transcendence' material list: Demon Machine, Tyrantroid, Destroyer Carapace, Ether Core (not obtained), Hiveformer (not obtained)｣
The only trait that requires traits that can be obtained from Apex creatures. There are currently two ingredients left here.
Once you obtain the Hiveformer, all that is left is the 'Ether Core'.
'Let's apply it first.'
I accepted the textbox's request.
The special genetic essence that comes from outside spreads throughout the body. The carapace that protects my organs, bones, muscles, and flesh begins to crack.
Eventually, the muscle fibers inside protruded outward through the cracks in the broken carapace and torn off scales. What looked like fur at first grew longer and longer as they became entangled with each other. The same thing happened all over the body except for the arms, legs, torso, head, neck, and wings.
In a human being, it was as if all the muscles below the shoulders had torn the flesh, but there was no particular pain.
The muscle fibers that protruded from the outside gradually became larger and longer, taking on a shape similar to tentacles. Just like what No. 26 showed when fighting the fleet, large and small tentacles grew all over its body.
'Are you okay?'
I've seen Amorph with the Hiveformer applied many times in games, but this is the first time I've seen it in real life. I quite liked the huge body covered with a bunch of small tentacles resembling plant stems, as it resembled the plant monsters I had seen in monster movies before.
"and!"
While inspecting the body with the new characteristics applied, I felt a short, intense wave next to me. It was a wave sent by No. 26 upon seeing me who had completed my transformation.
"pretty! pretty!"
The guy kept circling around me, letting out waves of admiration. I seemed to really like the sight of myself with a bundle of tentacles wrapped around my body.
｢Big baby is pretty!｣ [Zuzuzu (thank you)] ｢That, yes, is pretty? "I guess it's strange."
I'm glad that not only I like it, but also No. 26. It took out its pink fin and tapped my tentacle.
"My eldest baby is different from me, but we are similar! So I like it!" [Z(Really?)] "Yes. It's so soft and pretty."
It's just as he said. The pile of tentacles on my body has a different purpose and appearance from the Sea Demon's tentacles.
Unlike the Sea Demon's tentacles, which have saw blades on the inside, this one doesn't have those at all. Finely split carapace covers the surface, making it superficially similar to the body of a snake or a plant stem.
And my pile of tentacles can't express complex emotions like No. 26 can. Since the muscle fibers are tentacles, detailed control like when moving other body parts is not possible.
'Because the purpose was different in the first place.'
These tentacles created by hiveformers can do more than you can imagine. There is no need to be disappointed if you cannot use it for offense.
Anyway, the transformation was completed with this. I spread my folded wings again.
[Zuzu zuzuzuzu (Should we go back now)] ｢Yes!｣ ｢Seo-ah, if you look at me, I'll faint.'
Adhai, Mother of Heaven, PS-111. Everyone is waiting for me.
It's time to return to the dragon's lair.
-x-X-x-
After returning to the star system where Gallagon's nest is located, I headed straight to Gigacracker.
A huge spaceship moving along the orbit of a pure white planet reacted immediately as I approached. The large gate connected to the mineral storage facility was wide open.
When I went inside, I noticed a huge mountain crawler the size of a hill among the piled up minerals.
｢Hello, Ddandan!｣ ｢Geuwoo｣
After hearing No. 26's greeting, Mountain Crawler closed his four eyes and fell asleep again.
"Where did Seo-ah go?"
As Isabel said, the owner was nowhere to be seen.
'The treatment would have been over long ago, right?'
At that time, a mini screamer crawled by. A thing with the head of a human woman and long, thin metal legs stood still and looked up at me.
"It's MPS-03, right?" "hit. hit."
I imitated the voice with its mimicry organ and asked, and MPS-03 twitched its metal leg.
"Where is everyone?" "nest. 'Little baby' treatment. therapy." "In Gallagon's lair? "Not a Screamer support ship?" "nest. "No cure." The moment I heard that treatment was not possible, my heart sank. Something is wrong.
"I'll go down and come back." ｢Big baby, I want to go too!｣ "Wait a minute. "Let's go together."
I quickly opened the storage gate and came out. 26 and Isabel followed me.
'With PS-111's skills, eliminating APNC is no problem.'
He can design and manufacture Screamer himself, which is the essence of genetic engineering. Isabel, the MPS series are all his works. The probability that a technician with such outstanding skills will fail to remove a bullet is low.
'It's clear that Akira did something to APNC.'
He planted a trap on his subordinate's body to catch me. I also suffered during the battle because of that. If Aadhai was hit by a specially treated bullet, it would be difficult to recover using normal methods.
In my case, because I had excellent physical ability, I was able to survive even if I fell into his trap. On the other hand, Aadhai is weak, so he will be able to endure it for a much shorter time than me.
'…No, I don't know yet.'
My thoughts keep flowing negatively. No matter how serious the situation is, you must remain calm. Instead of thinking about useless things, I just focused on getting down to the nest.
I could feel the cold atmosphere of the frozen star above my carapace and bundle of tentacles. A white land spread beyond the natural barrier of ice and wind. On one side, you can see the entrance leading to the basement.
As I went down through the hole, a huge underground world appeared before me.
There is a Screamer support ship stuck in the ice below, rising like a tower. Normally I would have stopped by there first, but not this time. I flew at full speed towards the dragon's nest.
Thanks to focusing all my attention on flying, I soon arrived at the valley where Gallagon's nest was located.
｢Companion of the great Adhai｣
Belmarg, a white male Gallagon sha, sensed my visit and came out to meet me.
[Zuzuzu zuzuzu (Where is he?)] ｢This way｣
Following his guidance, I crawled deep into the cave created in the cliff.
After a while, I arrived at a cavity that was about four times the size of my body.
There were pieces of colorful, shiny minerals scattered on the floor, and dried vines and moss on the ceiling.
'Is this Aadhai's room?'
Looking at the scenery like a child's secret base, it really looked like a guy.
However, there was a strange feeling that was difficult to explain in words. Would you say it feels like something invisible is clinging to me and sucking my energy out? After entering the space, an unknown feeling of helplessness enveloped my entire body.
"Are you here?" "Amorph, you're safe!"
As I was thinking about my unreasonable discomfort, I felt a familiar voice and a thought wave. PS-111, the mother of the sky who took the form of a thunderbird and had various surgical tools on her arms, welcomed me.
"sister!" ｢Hello middle child! Hello friend!"
Isabel and No. 26, who returned alive from a life-threatening battle, also expressed their joy at seeing them.
'Neither of them were injured.'
After checking with auxiliary agencies, both showed no signs of serious injury. It's fortunate that the two are okay, but Aadhai is missing.
"What about Aadhai?"
In response to my question, PS-111 extended his finger and pointed toward the middle of the cavity. There, a large ruby gemstone measuring 10 meters in height was stuck in the ground.
I got closer to the ruby-like mineral. When I looked closely, there was a long white object inside. Judging from its small size and uniquely beautiful physique, it was undoubtedly Aadhai.
'How did this happen?'
I don't understand why Aadhai, who needs treatment, is inside the ruby. At that time, Heavenly Mother sent me a thought wave.
"That's not ruby. However, it is not like a mineral." "That substance is the result of crystallization of the energy body released by 'Little Baby' during treatment." "what?" "From arrival to treatment, everything went according to Amov's plan."
When I expressed my doubt, PS-111 began to explain.
"'Middle Baby' succeeded in activating the limited ability to modify genetic models. Through this, we were able to continuously inject healing fluid into the little baby, lowering the probability of surgery failure by 16%." "In fact, PS-111 succeeded in neutralizing most of the APNC in Adhaj's body." "Was there a problem with the APNC?" "no. "There were no special features other than changing the shape of the bullet to increase penetration." "The problem arose after the treatment was over. "The psychic power in Aadhai's body continued to decrease." "Psychic power?"
Absorbing the psychic power of the target it hits is a characteristic of APNC. If the bullet is neutralized, it is true that the psychic power that was consumed is regenerated.
"The psychic power is being lost within the little baby's body and a new energy body is being created. "The substance that currently protects the little baby was formed when the energy body overgenerated during this process was crystallized and released to the outside."
I looked at Aadhai, who was sleeping inside a rock that resembled a ruby. That color, like wine made from the blazing sun, was very similar to the red glow that appears when the guy wears red armor.
"Do not touch."
I stretched out my wings and arms, wondering what would happen if I touched them, but Heavenly Mother stopped me.
"why?" "After Aadhai is in that state, he is continuously absorbing all the energy. "If you touch it directly here…"
At that time, a new visitor entered the joint.
It was Ham Ort, a gallagon with beautiful scales that looked like they were carved from obsidian. She looked at me and lowered her head slightly.
｢Adhai's companion｣｢Welcome｣｢I want it｣｢now｣｢It's difficult｣ [Zuzuzu (It's okay)]
She must have been out hunting, or she was holding on to a large corpse with her front paws. It was a Giganterium that a group of Gallagons had hunted before.
'Why did you bring the body?'
She dragged the corpse and placed it on the crystal containing Aadhai.
Then something bizarre happened. The corpse was rapidly dried and distorted, as if gallagons were sucking the body fluids of their prey.
After a few seconds, only bony bones and skin remained around Aadhai.
"All the energy is absorbed like that." "The material that protects the little baby requires a continuous supply of energy. "If energy is not supplied as it is now, all energy existing around us is robbed." "That's why Ham Ort and the other gallagons keep bringing us food."
Now that I think about it, I wondered why I felt helpless when I came here, and this was the cause. Just by getting close to Aadhai, your energy is being sucked out.
"Will this guy's life be in danger?" "The surgery was completed successfully. "As long as an energy source exists, the probability that something will go wrong with the little one's life is currently calculated to be 11%." "Isabel?"
Isabel, who had received my request, looked at Adhai with her heavenly eyes.
"It is currently said to be in a 'dormant' state. "As you said, I don't think there will be any particular problems now that the energy is supplied."
The Screamer sisters came to the same conclusion.
First of all, it is fortunate that Aadhai escaped the danger of his life, but it is too early to feel at ease.
As far as I know, there is no technique that uses dragon power to absorb it in that way. His current state should be considered an unknown state that has not been seen in the game.
'No, wait.'
Requiring a large amount of energy, being in a forced dormant state, and protecting one's body by secreting special substances. These are all elements that we have seen a lot somewhere.
'When I evolve.'
Now that I think about it, there is something Adhai told me when he first gained the power of Red Gallagon. I'm sorry I failed.
As he was growing up, he felt strange and gave up on becoming Red Gallagon. When I heard that, I thought it was because she wanted to remain by my side rather than become the Queen of Gallagon.
Now that I think about it, I may have given up my power because I was worried about the current situation. At that time, we were facing a fight against a powerful enemy called Odd Grad. If he hadn't participated in the battle, I wouldn't be where I am today.
"Aadhai's condition. "Maybe we are preparing for evolution?" "Evolution? ah!"
Heavenly Mother heard me and opened her pumpkin-colored eyes wide.
"This is an interesting opinion, but we believe it differs from previously recorded growth processes." "No, something else might be right."
If you think about the being that is trying to become Aadhai now, it is normal for it to be different from before.
"Because this is the first time he has challenged the full Red Gallagon." "Red Gallagon?" "It's a Gallagon that has fully grown. "He is the most superior of all Gallagons."
PS-111 nodded as if he was interested in hearing about the existence of Red Gallagon for the first time.
"Similar to Aimorph, if mutations occur at the genetic level, it is advantageous to have means to protect the body. In fact, the substances secreted by small babies are suitable for minimizing the risks that occur during the mutation process." "okay." "But this won't be everything. "If Red Gallagon could be made by simply supplying energy, it wouldn't be this rare."
It's just as she said.
It is too easy to simply go inside the red crystal and absorb the energy. There are definitely other conditions. This is a very difficult condition to achieve for an ordinary Gallagon.
Then Isabel joined the conversation.
"I heard about Red Gallagon from 'Sister Penelope' before." "From Penelope?" "Yes. "Gallagons tend to believe that they are descendants of star power."
There is definitely a trend like that just looking at Aadhai. When using dragon power or when I wielded strong power, he described it as star power.
"Then how can you become the most superior Gallagon? "I thought it would be like eating a shining star." "Eating a star is physically impossible."
PS-111 denied it, but something came to mind the moment I heard the expression 'eating stars'. Heaven's Mother met my gaze as if she had similar thoughts.
"Obviously, eating that 'being' is close to impossible." "It will be difficult even if there are dozens of Black Gallagons."
If you can't eat the star directly, you can eat a creature that swallows the star's energy instead.
And I know what exists that meets those conditions.
'Arcane Orca.'
The highest Apex creature that lives by feasting on the energy of stars and the owner of the 'Ether Core' trait.
This guy is a sacrifice for Red Gallagon's growth.
-x-X-x-
Apex refers to creatures that are at the top of the space survival ecosystem.
Although it varies from case to case, they usually have excellent combat power. And even within the Apex, there is a hierarchy.
Apex's highest-ranking creatures possess such terrifying power that they can be said to have transcended the laws of nature.
Among all the entities in the game, Red Gallagon is the only one that can use 'Dragon Power', Vortex One has the power to defy the laws of physics and change reality, etc.
They are powerful enemies that require multiple players to join forces to fight them.
Likewise, Arcane Orca is a creature with very strong power. Like its close relatives, Skywhale and Starshark, it has specialized abilities in energy manipulation.
Of course, you shouldn't think of it at the level of Sky Whale. It is a creature as dangerous as the Vortex One.
It is much stronger than the incomplete 'Ring of Anguish' that was fought before.
"Arcane Orcarani. It won't be easy."
The Mother of Heaven let out a wave of thoughtful thoughts. I guess he reacted that way because he was well aware of Arcane Orca's notoriety.
'It has to be that way.'
One of the difficulties in conquering Arcane Orca is 'finding it' itself. Since it relies on the energy of stars, it rarely approaches planets. And rather than settling down in one star system, it constantly wanders around looking for new food.
In fact, the entire universe can be seen as a stage for its activities.
'That's why it's so hard to find.'
However, if you say that it is easy to fight once you find it, that is not true. It's at least twice as strong as the incomplete Vortex One I fought here.
'Let's skip the fighting issue for now. Time is more important now.'
We don't know how long Aadhai will remain like that. It would be nice if he returned to normal along the way, but that may not be the case.
Moreover, it is currently sucking up all the energy around it. This is the nest where a group of gallagons stay. Many young gallagons and eggs survive on energy leaking from the ground and minerals.
'If the hunt continues, everyone will starve to death.'
I looked at Ham Oort. Black Gallagon, who brought food for his daughter, did not take his eyes off the red crystal.
[Zuzuzuzu Zuzu Zuzuzuzuzu Zuzuzuzu (How are the chicks? Aren't they starving?)]
"Bird's nest" "Food" "Abundant" "Everyone" "Full"
[Zu (Really?)]
"But" "Great Aadhay" "More" "A lot" "Eat" "Food" "Power of the stars" "Exhaustion" "Dangerous"
[Zuzuz zuzuzu zuzuzu zuzu (How long do you think you can last?)]
"Star of Fire"
｢Twice｣｢Until you see it｣
On this planet, daylight comes very briefly, once every 30 days. It is said that you can hold out until the fire star, that is, the fixed star, is visible twice, so I guess there is a grace period of about 60 days.
'It's breathtaking.'
Just finding a star system where Arcane Orca might be located consumes quite a bit of time. Even if you start preparing right away, time is running out. If there are variables that I didn't expect along the way, even that will decrease further.
'for a moment.'
When I thought about variables, something suddenly occurred to me.
Number 26, who recently gained enormous psychic power. There is still a lot of energy left in its body. I called number 26, which emits a dark light and expresses sadness.
[Zuzuzuzu Zuzuzuzu Zuzuzuzu (Would you please take care of the baby Gallagons here?)]
｢Little flutter? Yes.｣
[Zuz, zuzuzu, zuzuzu, zuzuzuzu (I'll be able to endure more because I have this person)]
｢Thank you｣
If No. 26 supplies energy to the Gallagon group, we can buy additional time. Next, I asked Isabel to stay here as well.
This is because if he has a special eye, he will know right away if there is a problem with Aadhai and the Blue Gallagons.
"okay. If there is any problem, I will contact you."
"thank you. I've done everything I could here. There is no time, so we must start preparing to hunt Arcane Orca right away."
"Let's go back to Gigacracker."
Before leaving the room, I took one last look at Aadhai sleeping in the red crystal. I made a promise while looking at Sujeong, which did not move from beginning to end.
He says no matter what happens, Aadhai will definitely be taken out.
'Please be patient just a little longer until then.'
With that in mind, I left the nest with the kids. After returning to Gigacracker, PS-111 went straight to the situation room. Since there is little information about Arcane Orca, this is to check the data stored in the ship's computer.
I decided to talk with Heavenly Mother about where he might be.
"First of all, I think you and I have some idea about Arcane Orca."
"huh."
"I've been caught a few times because of the equipment."
The Arcane Orca's body is used to make very powerful equipment and super weapons. So the very large clans would periodically organize search parties to track him down.
As I recall, after the clan was disbanded, she worked as a mercenary in another clan's search party. There will also be information and know-how gained while working with them.
"I'll be honest. The way I track is not suitable for this situation."
I also tracked down and killed an Arcane Orca, but I didn't hunt it in a very efficient manner. There were two main strategies I mainly used.
You can either wander around checking the state of the star yourself, or secretly follow the clan tracking the Arcane Orca. Considering the current situation, the former is not possible because it would take a long time, and the latter is not possible because it is unclear whether there is a tracking team.
So this time I need her help.
"Well, if I choose your method, it seems like it will take more time just to prepare."
She also understood what I was trying to say and nodded her head.
"There is information that is not well known."
She continued, scratching her beak with the claws at the end of her wings.
"Usually, when you track Arcane Orca, you usually look at traces left on stars, right?"
"Yes. It's common to see the electromagnetic waves it leaves behind as it absorbs stellar energy."
"There was a player in the tracking team I participated in who tried an unusual investigation method. We investigated not the star, but the planets influenced by that star."
"Planet?"
｢There are cases where primitive civilizations or colonial NPCs on a planet leave records of abnormal phenomena that occur on a star.｣
Investigating the NPCs on the planet. This is my first time hearing this information.
｢In primitive civilizations, it remained in the form of a tale, and in colonies, it remained in the form of an observation journal.｣
"A tale and an observation journal."
Among these, I heard that observation logs are sometimes collected by trade players. This is because abnormal star activity can cause damage to trading ships.
"At that time, the tracking team collected all the stories and observation logs of places where Arcane Orca might appear. And we selected only the relevant ones and predicted the target's movement path."
"Is that possible?"
"I did it and it worked."
"But how did that fact not become known?"
"The tracking clan that first tried it soon collapsed due to infighting, and the clan members also quit the game. I haven't seen anyone try this method since then."
Thanks to this, I don't know whether to be sad or glad that the information didn't spread.
"Then we should start by checking the routes you know in the game."
"PS-111 and I will handle that part. If it's him, it will take a few days to check."
"Please do me a favor."
"Don't expect too much. If it is different from what I know, the investigation time will be longer."
"If we need to investigate a planet, I will go."
"It's better for me to go than that…ah."
Glowing amber eyes were fixed on my pile of tentacles. He had been restless because of Aadhai's work, but now he seemed to have recognized my changed appearance.
"Where did you get the Hiveformer?"
"I got it while fighting Akira."
"… My heart sank when I saw those tentacles in the game, but I see them here too."
"I've seen them before?"
"We even set up an advance base on the planet to catch Arcane Orca, but you came and ruined it. Don't you remember?"
"Oh."
When she said that, I remembered. There was a time when I was secretly following the punitive force and upon seeing them descend on the planet, I immediately prepared a terrorist attack.
Now that I see it, she must have been in that punitive force too.
"The first time I saw a dead human being consumed by a hiveformer, I almost felt really traumatized."
"Well, it changed in a bit of a strange way."
"To be honest, this is worse than having you skinned and hung."
She felt disgusted, as if an unpleasant memory had come to mind. Seeing the feathers on its body stand up stiffly, it seemed like it really hated it.
'It's not that bad.'
I admit that it's a bit disgusting, but I didn't expect to hate it this much.
"I'll go down alone when I investigate the planet."
She glared at me with narrowed eyes and sighed softly.
"…I'll have to work hard to make sure you don't end up on the planet."
The story about tracking the Arcane Orca ended with her grumbling and sad speech. Heavenly Mother left for the situation room where PS-111 was located, and I was left alone in the storage room.
Originally I was thinking of checking the text box. This is because, in addition to the Hiveformer, there was quite a bit of income gained through battle.
However, perhaps because it was my first rest after an intense battle, I felt very tired. Without realizing it, I fell face down on the hard metal floor and laid my head down.
'It's not urgent, so let's wake up and take a look at this.'
I fell into a deep sleep as if I had lost my mind, with the vibrations of the engine sounding softly along the floor.