Chapter 13
Chapter 13
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 13
Chapter Title: Ventilation Territory
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'The person on the call seems to be from the Yujin Family.'
As far as I knew, the Crisis Management Team Leader wasn't from the Yujin Family.
His name was Arnold Russell. The surname Russell belonged to neither Noble Capital nor Prime Capital—it was just a plain, ordinary name.
'Maybe it's an alias.'
Or he could be a lackey working for the person on the call.
From the conversation, it looked like they wanted Kisaragi dead.
'Infighting, huh?'
In the game, Noble Capital folks were cold-blooded killers who spared no one—not family, not friends—when power and money were on the line. The Yujin Family was Noble Capital too, so the odds of them slaughtering each other were sky-high.
And right here in the middle of space made it the perfect spot to take out Kisaragi Yujin.
'But conveniently, I did the deed.'
From what I could piece together, he had two main goals: kill Kisaragi and lure the ship to C-08.
I didn't know why, but thanks to me, he was damn close to achieving them both.
'Whatever. Whether the Yujin Family tears itself apart or not has nothing to do with me.'
What mattered was what to do with that bastard Arnold Russell.
Livestock existed to be bred and eaten. Smart prey that got too clever had to be culled.
It didn't matter what plans he had or what he was thinking.
'The guy's already on guard against me.'
That alone was reason enough to kill him.
Now that I'd evolved to Juvenile, tangling with soldiers wasn't a big deal. With a sneak attack, I could take down that muscle-bound oaf no problem.
'But chances like that aren't easy to come by.'
Arnold had been on my hit list since my Hatchling days, but the guy had surprisingly few openings. He always stuck to crowded areas and avoided lonely spots like the plague.
'Take him out in his room like the Logistics Team Leader?'
I'd considered hitting him while he slept, but that wasn't simple either.
The guy was fit, yet paranoid as hell—he even slept in reinforced gear. Unlike the grunts' basic suits, his mid-grade armor made a one-shot kill tricky even with a surprise attack.
Fail the ambush, and shit would get messy fast. He'd radio the ship AI with that comms option in his suit for sure.
'Guess I've only got one play here.'
No weaknesses? Then watch him until he slips up.
Time was all you needed to bag tough prey.
I gave him one last glance before heading back to my nest.
He was a tough nut, sure—but Arnold had picked the wrong enemy to fight.
I'd never let prey I'd marked get away.
In a world where more humans came out of incubators than their mothers' wombs, searching for God had to be the dumbest joke imaginable.
But somehow, I had a feeling He was real.
How else could things be lining up so perfectly in my favor?
"Security Team Leader! What the hell are you doing?! Didn't you say you could find it?!"
"I-I'm sorry..."
Yuseong was bellowing from below. Through the gaps in the grating, I could see the back of the Security Team Leader's head as he bowed helplessly.
I was eavesdropping on their meeting from up in the vents above the conference room.
"How many times have I heard 'sorry' from you now?! We're linking up with those pirate scum in two days, and you haven't solved a damn thing!"
"W-well, even after adding more cameras and guards, we still haven't caught a trace..."
"Goddamn it! Navigation Team Leader! How many missing persons on board right now?"
"...Including the former Logistics Team Leader, eight."
"Seven missing since the Research Team Leader died, and you still can't catch the bastard? Are you in on it with him or something?!"
"N-no, sir!"
The current suspect for the mysterious killer stalking the ship was the Logistics Team Leader.
His suspicious behavior before vanishing, plus the discovery of his container, sealed the deal.
A smuggler who'd snuck aboard in disguise, then ghosted after the bizarre murders.
With tracks that shady, everyone pegged him as the culprit.
'Sorry to disappoint, but the real killer's right here.'
Oblivious to the true murderer overhead, Yuseong sighed and slumped into his chair.
"Just one question. Isn't the Logistics Team Leader human? Don't we have to search every place a person could go?"
"W-we've got cameras short-staffed in spots, but we've covered all the key areas. It dodges them like a ghost."
"Sigh. What about the bodies? They don't walk off on their own—gotta be stashed somewhere. Why can't you find them?"
"We're monitoring every possible disposal spot round the clock. No idea how it's doing it, but we can't locate a thing."
All eyes in the room locked on the Security Team Leader as he pulled out a cloth to wipe his brow. His thinning hair made him look even more pathetic, but no one stepped up to help.
"Technical Team Leader. Any luck with trackers?"
"Beyond my skills. Even if I whipped one up, no guarantees on quality."
"Damn. Killing off anyone who could track it first. Definitely not your average joe."
A lazy smuggler turning pro assassin overnight. If my body weren't Aimorph, I'd be rolling on the floor laughing.
That's when Crisis Management Team Leader Arnold raised his hand.
"Captain. I believe the Security Team Leader's telling the truth."
"What's this now?"
"I've checked the camera layouts and every possible hiding spot on the ship myself. He's done all he can."
"You haven't caught the perp, and now you're defending him...?"
"What I'm saying is!"
Arnold raised his voice, as if to cut off Yuseong's growing anger.
"It's true from a human perspective. No human could hide that well."
"What? Crisis Management. You calling this meeting to peddle those stupid rumors?"
'Huh?'
I'd been enjoying the show, but the mood shifted.
Arnold seemed dead set on bringing it up. Even with the captain snapping at him, he pressed on undeterred.
"There might be something nonhuman attacking us."
"Listen here. The ship AI isn't that dumb. Not the latest model, but it ran a battleship once. If some animal was scurrying around, it'd have caught it ages ago."
"I'm ex-military, so I know AI capabilities well. Navigation Team Leader. But you all remember—the Logistics Team Leader's container. All those cryo-tubes inside were empty."
"Hm. True."
"So where'd everything in there go?"
A few team leaders nodded at his words. Yuseong straightened up, looking convinced.
'Oh, crap.'
The room's suspicions were veering into dangerous territory.
The exact thing I'd been most wary of: alien creature doubts creeping into their heads.
"Fine, say some freak space monster's on the loose. Where's it supposed to be roaming? Cameras every hallway midpoint, and not a glimpse."
"There's one place we haven't checked."
He pointed straight up with his finger. As eyes turned my way, I quickly retreated from the grating.
"The vents?"
"Ventilation ducts run throughout the ship. Don't know its size, but anything around a meter could navigate them fine."
He was spot on.
Arnold wasn't the only one who'd underestimated the enemy. I might've done the same with him.
'Strategic blunder.'
I'd planned to take my time wearing him down, but he was showing sharper insight than expected. Should've taken the risk and offed him sooner.
"A meter? Too small to kill people, no?"
"Captain. Metallic Gremlins max out at 80cm, but they can wreck battleships. Size isn't everything."
"Hrm."
It felt like a turning point. Everyone here was buying into Arnold's pitch. Cold sweats from anxiety eased, erratic pulses steadied.
"One problem. If some monster really killed people, what about the Research Team Leader's body? If it ate her, we're screwed either way."
"We capture it alive and hand it to Noble Capital. Once they confirm it ate the Research Team Leader, they'll buy it."
Questions flew from all sides, but Arnold had answers for everything—like he'd prepped for this.
When the barrage finally died down, only Yuseong remained.
"Crisis Management."
"Yes, Captain."
"How many soldiers you need?"
"I'll take six agile ones from the eight-man squads to sweep the vents."
"Approved. Bring back results."
"Thank you."
After the meeting ended, I returned to my nest.
'...Held out longer than I thought.'
Even playing it safe, confrontation was inevitable. Unless I ditched the nest and ran, I couldn't evade them forever in the vents.
'Even if I left, nowhere to go.'
Arnold's type would slap security measures on every vent access. That'd seal the ducts off anyway.
Corridors crawling with cameras, vents off-limits. Not full war yet, but time was ticking.
The moment of truth was closing in.
'Flee... or fight.'
My nest, withered since I formed the egg, now brimmed with life like spring had arrived. Leaning against it, I reached out a small hand to caress the spores.
Feeling their pulse, I made my choice.
'I'll fight.'
The ship was theirs, but these vents? Mine.
This was my domain, my home. I'd scoped the blueprints and maps once; compared to them, my intel advantage was massive.
'Conditions favor me too.'
Not just the battlefield. The whole situation around the ship was turning against them.
Pirate rendezvous in two days.
With bodies vanished, fat chance Yuseong paid full credits. Pirates wouldn't lift a finger for nothing.
Even if he didn't gripe, who knew how those Space Dogs—betrayal incarnate—would react? He knew they wouldn't let the ship sail off unscathed.
Yuseong ordered the meetup, yet here he was, prepping for battle by chewing out his underlings.
Either way, to face pirates, they'd need every soldier intact. Couldn't spare many on me.
Plus, Arnold wanted me alive.
'Capture an Aimorph?'
Aimorphs never stopped until the enemy was obliterated. Even hacked to a head, they'd rip out throats. That's me—an ultra-hostile alien. Arnold thought I was some random wild animal? Dream on.
Capturing an unknown foe with a skeleton crew in hostile terrain? Utter folly.
'Time to teach them how terrifying it is to fight an Aimorph in a spaceship.'
I'd use every tool at my disposal.
Show them what hell in space really looks like.