----------------------------------------------------------------- Translator: Ryuma Chapter: 141 Chapter Title: Sea Demon's Masquerade ----------------------------------------------------------------- “Cosmic Bolt charging 25% complete!” The situation room aboard the Imperial Mothership Judger of Damos 08. Preparations were underway to fire the mothership's main gun, the Cosmic Bolt. In the center of the situation room, various pieces of information floated as images— the Cosmic Bolt's charging status, the target for impact, and more. The Cult members in the room used their psychic powers to output or edit the data they needed for their duties, manifesting it as visuals. Unlike humans, the Cult were adept at wielding psychic powers. Thanks to that, in situations like this, they actively employed them to assist with tasks that computers couldn't handle quickly. “Stand by once charging is complete.” “Understood.” The captain stood with arms crossed, staring at the reinforced glass at the front of the situation room. Beyond it lay the blue planet, Saigil 08. That sacred place, designated a holy site by the Cult Council, was so breathtakingly beautiful that it was hard to believe it had been contaminated. Perhaps it wasn't too late yet. But we can't just sit back and watch. The contamination defined by the Cult Council came in various forms. Nests of outspacers, secret gatherings of Vortex One followers, and so on. Though their shapes differed, each posed a lethal threat to the security of the Cult Empire. To protect their kin and uphold the 'Providence,' contamination had to be eradicated before it could spread. That's why we're here. The absolute weapon built into the Imperial Mothership, the Cosmic Bolt, was extremely effective for such purification operations. This weapon, powered by dark matter and the heart of a Black Galleron, could incinerate a planet's surface in a short time. The atmosphere inside the planet would dissipate, and all water, including the oceans, would evaporate. In other words, any planet struck by the Cosmic Bolt—even one with the most bountiful environment—would instantly become a barren wasteland incapable of supporting any life. About four hours until launch. Currently, warrior squads from the mothership had descended to Saigil 08. They were there on the captain's secret orders to capture the planet's native wolf beasts. The captain checked the projected launch time displayed below the main gun's charging status image. They were told to ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠return two hours before that. This wasn't a search for contaminated enemies; it was just an order to capture a few native wolf beasts at a primitive level. The chance of those primitives harming the mothership's warrior squads was next to zero. So the captain wasn't overly concerned. “Captain, incoming transmission from the Mothership Battle Group. No traces of Mega Corp or Star Union activity detected in the vicinity.” “We destroyed the Mega Corp satellites, but you never know. Maintain maximum alert until the purification mission is complete.” In response to his subordinate's report, the captain issued further orders. He pushed thoughts of the squads on the surface to the back of his mind for the moment. - “Warrior Captain Race! Telepathy is impossible!” “Nonsense!” Race hurriedly pressed the button on his helmet to activate the telepathy function. But no matter how long he waited, no telepathic link formed. Not with the mothership, nor with the other warrior squads on the same continent. Damn it! He tried several times, but it all failed. Telepathy technology using psychic power might seem omnipotent, but it wasn't. There were ways to neutralize it, along with various other psychic power techniques. For instance, the jamming devices commonly used on Cult warships. Capital ships like the Imperial Mothership were equipped with devices to disrupt enemy telepathy and psychic power usage. Made with Black Silver, the anti-psionic metal, they could temporarily neutralize the Cult's psychic powers. Jamming? No, if that were the case, they would've noticed from orbit. If someone had brought a jamming device planetside, there would've been an uproar from orbit already. The Imperial Mothership had equipment to detect and counter jamming devices. If not jamming gear, then only one possibility remained. There's a psionic creature among the enemies! Powerful psionic creatures like Black Gallerons or Red Gallerons—or beings skilled in superpowers—could disrupt psychic powers even more effectively than jamming devices. But there shouldn't be any psionic creatures on this continent... Of course, across the entire planet, there were 'Rama Boltexion'—what humans called Sea Demons—predators of that sort. But this was the middle of the continent. There was no way an ocean monster that dwelled in the deep sea could come this far inland. “Warrior Captain, what do we do?” “Hamane. Can you access Memory Sight?” “I'll try. Just a moment... Huh? Wh-what? Why isn't it working?” 'Memory Sight' was a support-type psychic power technique that could read the past of a location. Hamane, the goat-horned Cult among the squad members, was a Memory Sight specialist, but even she was useless right now. Not just telepathy... Race gave orders to his subordinates and ran a few tests to confirm if all psychic power techniques were disabled for the entire squad. Whether fortunate or unfortunate, only support-type techniques like telepathy and Memory Sight were unusable. Unlike jamming interference, their weapons and reinforced suits still functioned perfectly. Still, fighting a mysterious enemy that restricted specific psychic power techniques was problematic. They lacked intel on the foe, and they had ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠a time limit. In a few hours, this planet would become a sea of fire—they had to evacuate before then. In the end, Race chose to abandon the mission. “We don't know the enemy's identity, so moving like this is too risky. Everyone, fall back to the transport ship.” He knew the captain's intent in ordering them to capture wolves. If casualties mounted during the mission, it would go against the captain's wishes. “Isabel, cover the rear. Jenir, support Gerrisi. Hamane, grab the Purple Spray Gun.” At Race's command, the eight warrior squad members moved with perfect coordination. As battle-hardened veterans, there was no wasted motion in their actions. But they all knew it too. One squad member missing, another mentally unstable. They'd already suffered two casualties before even encountering the enemy. For all their swift movements, unease lingered in their eyes. Having reorganized their formation and gear, the warrior squad began retreating toward the transport ship. The distance to the transport ship would take about an hour at a walking pace. At a half-run, thirty minutes would suffice. Race and the squad moved at high speed, never neglecting their surroundings. An hour passed like that. Reality betrayed Race's expectations. “Wh-what is this?!” “Wh-what the hell happened?!” Cult warrior squads were trained to maintain composure at all times. Psychic powers were heavily influenced by mental state, so stability was paramount. Yet these warriors were half-sobbing, screaming in terror. But Race couldn't blame them. He wanted to scream himself but barely held it back. Before them stood a charred tree. The very tree Gerrisi had shot with the Purple Spray Gun an hour ago. They'd moved toward the transport ship for an hour... only to return to their starting point. “...

｢■■ ■■■ ■■!｣ The moment he shouted, the Sea Demon's massive tentacle swept toward the warrior squad.