Escape (2)

'Ah.'

The instant Jason's head entered my mouth, I realized I had made a tremendous mistake. The red water of life trickling down my throat was astonishingly addictive — so much so that I forgot all about the searing hole punched through my neck.

Jason's blood resembled maple syrup, only with a far deeper savoriness. His flesh, I could tell, would have been more alluring than anything I could imagine.

The problem was that the head was all I had. His torso, everything below the neck, had vanished somewhere in a wash of blue light.

'I suppose I should count myself lucky to have salvaged the head at all.'

Thanks to the Essence Harvester's Jaw, a head alone was enough to claim every Genetic Essence the creature carried.

I flexed my jaws and began to chew through Jason's skull. Flesh, muscle, blood, bone, brain, and the one horn he had left — every element that composed a Cultist's head was absorbed into me.

Then translucent text boxes began popping up before my eyes, one after another.

'Why are there so many?'

I'd expected something similar to when I'd taken Muriel, but the number of text boxes was far greater than I'd anticipated.

'Perks he'd stolen from other players, maybe?'

Going by the output, Jason had held three perks in total. Two of them couldn't be used under the current conditions, and only one could be fused with a trait I already possessed.

'Then again, with the Plunderer's Amorphous Polyhedron, I used Metal Absorption as the material too.'

I checked the fusable perk first. Either Space Bacteria, an infection-based trait, or Illusory Flames, a psychic-based trait, could serve as the fusion vessel.

The two traits were polar opposites in nature, and whichever I chose would produce a completely different result.

On top of that, for reasons I couldn't fathom, I'd even been given a full twenty-four hours to decide.

'Never had a prey like this before.'

It was an unprecedented situation, and I didn't welcome it. Nothing grants benefits like this for free.

'A critical crossroads, huh...'

With twenty-four hours still on the clock, there was no need to choose right away.

There were things that had to come first.

The rich, high-quality energy I'd gained from devouring Jason's head went entirely toward healing the wound in my neck. Once the puncture wound had roughly closed, the gushing blood finally stopped.

With the critical injury mended, the Revenant Organ finished its duty and returned to dormancy. The microscopic organ clinging to my heart would now sink into a long slumber for the next six months.

Which meant that in a fight against a Black Galagon, the Revenant Organ might well be off the table.

'If they attack me in this state, I have no chance of winning.'

Between the rampage I'd torn through the underground and the Thunder God strike on top of it, there was no telling when the Galagons might come flying in.

It wasn't just me — no one here was in normal condition. No. 26 had suffered severe wounds across her body, Adhai's legs and wings were both broken, and PS-111 was battered to the point where finding an intact part of her would be a challenge.

The only one in decent shape was Mother of the Sky, who had gotten off with nothing more than a cracked beak.

She came over to me.

"We need to get out of here. Fast."

She, too, understood that our situation was anything but good.

[Zzzzzz zz zzzz (Let's head for the mountains)]

"...Are you sure that's safe, with the Galagons already sweeping through?"

Just as she said, the mountains weren't safe — but there was no alternative. The underground space beneath our feet had collapsed completely.

Even if we were lucky enough to find a section that hadn't caved in, the odds of running into the Galagons drawn to this place were high.

'And it's not just shelter. The food supply is a problem too.'

The last card I'd played to kill Jason was the combo of Clever Underdog and Paragon of the Hunt. I chose it because I judged it useful for putting down the enemy — but there had been another reason as well.

Clever Underdog is a special state optimized for agility and stealth, and it also allocates consumed energy with maximum efficiency. That meant it could minimize the side effects of Paragon of the Hunt.

Like before, the odds of the kids catching on were low.

'Right now, the kids worry me more than I do.'

There were only two ways to heal the badly injured: feed them, or build a nest and coat them with Symbiote Spores.

'Either way, it takes a massive amount of food.'

And there was no prey anywhere nearby. When the underground had come down, the food supply had been buried under the ice along with everything else.

[Zzzzzz zz zzzzz zzzzz (There's no other way right now)]

"Got it."

Mother of the Sky nodded, transformed into her griffon form, and hoisted the wrecked PS-111 onto her back.

"Pardon me. Middle Baby."

"...Could you just call me Mother of the Sky?"

"That is an unauthorized command."

"......"

Meanwhile, I carefully lifted No. 26. Badly wounded, she had shrunk herself down to a tiny size, no doubt to minimize energy leakage.

[Zzzz zzzzz (Are you hurt anywhere?)]

"I'm okay! Is Big Baby not hurting?"

One look at her deathly pale body told me she was in agony. And yet there she ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠was, worrying about me first. A strange feeling stirred in me.

[Zzz zzzzz zzzzz (Something like this heals right up)]

"Amazing!"

[Zzzzz zzzzz (Just bear with it a little longer)]

I set her carefully on top of my head, taking care not to hurt her, and turned to check on Adhai.

She was in very bad shape. The broken bones in her forelegs and wings were problem enough, but hypothermia was the greatest danger of all.

I lifted the shivering girl with my combat arms and pressed her tightly against my chest, using the fur covering my body to raise her temperature by even a fraction.

"Warmth."

Feeling her nuzzle into my chest, I looked toward Mother of the Sky. Finished with her preparations, she met my eyes and nodded.

We ran toward the ridge of the black mountains. I churned all four legs of my ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠centaur frame without pause, while Mother of the Sky drove her lion-like body forward in powerful bounds.

The tracks we left behind were quickly faded by the endless downpour of white ice-flowers.

Mid-run, a growl rolled down from the ink-black sky — the herald of a snowstorm. The snowfall thickened into a raging blizzard, and the temperature around us plummeted. If we delayed even a little, the cold-vulnerable Adhai and Mother of the Sky would freeze to death where they stood.

Mother of the Sky knew it too, and she was running flat out.

After roughly ten minutes of that desperate pace, we reached the tail end of the mountain range. It was a different place from where we'd fought the Screamers yesterday, but the scenery looked much the same: trees that were thin at the base while their branches spread upward like spiderwebs. They had evolved that way to survive the relentless gales and blizzards.

Thanks to the canopy of branches, the forest interior was less bitter than the open ground.

Of course, all that meant was we'd escaped the risk of freezing on the spot — it hardly made the place warm.

I set No. 26 and Adhai down and tore into the earth, gouging out a large pit before covering it with branches gathered from nearby.

[Zzzzz zzzzzzz zzzz zz (It'll help if you get inside)]

I would have loved to build a fire, but if any smoke escaped, the Galagons would find us. Reluctantly, this was the best I could do.

"Everybody, huddle up close. You'll feel less cold that way."

"Yeah."

"Cold" "Cold" "Cold!"

"Heat dissipation function is currently inactive. It can be activated with an additional energy supply."

Four kinds of beings pressed themselves together to survive. That bought us more time.

'Now, the energy we need for recovery.'

Just as PS-111 had said — we needed energy. If No. 26 recovered, she could inflate herself and shield the others from the cold.

'And I could hand psychic power over to PS-111 too.'

I also needed something to devour on the spot and fill my own belly. Leaving the kids in Mother of the Sky's care, I pushed into the depths of the forest.

Only a few minutes remained before Paragon of the Hunt ran out. This was insurance against whatever side effects might follow.

'I have to find something. Anything.'

It didn't matter what, so long as it was a living creature I could convert into energy. If I didn't put something in my mouth soon, there was no telling what would happen to me.

The auxiliary organ, reshaped into twin bone blades, threw everything it had into searching for living prey. It bobbed and swept this way and that — and before long, it caught movement nearby.

The sound of many footsteps.

I sprinted toward the noise. Passing countless trees, I arrived at the place, and there stood the source of the sound.

'...Damn.'

Unfortunately, they were far from what I'd hoped for.

"Hostile organism detected. Thirty percent match with designated target. Main controller 'Pyra Eleven' — orders in delay status."

"Transmitting data to PS-250 intermediate terminal. Transmission complete."

‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠

The owners of the footsteps were three new-model Screamers. Behind them lay a fallen beast covered in green scales.

A body easily exceeding ten meters including the tail, wings as enormous as the rest of it — the creature was a Green Galagon.

Its body was riddled with bite wounds, yet there was not a trace of the smell of blood. Someone had clearly drained and drunk every last drop the creature possessed.

'I don't know what happened to ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠it, but...'

Right now, that Galagon's corpse was exactly what I needed to refill my energy.

"Intermediate terminal authority: none confirmed. Independent judgment required."

"Energy replenishment complete. Galagon biological characteristics applied."

"Commencing target suppression."

With that, the Screamers threw themselves at me at tremendous speed — a burst that looked remarkably like Adhai's Super Acceleration.

One of them cut through the air and swung its spider-like metal legs at me.

In my Clever Underdog form, I kicked off the ground with all four legs and slipped sideways out of its path.

I lashed my tail at the creature as it sailed just past me, and the pincer at its tip smashed squarely into the back of its skull.

"Kik!"

Uttering a grotesque screech, the Screamer was hammered into the ground. In that instant, another had already closed to point-blank range.

Two forelimbs, each tipped with three sharp claws, flew at my head. I caught both of its legs with my combat arms.

The Screamer's body twisted grotesquely, and the legs behind it lunged for my flank — a maneuver only possible for something with eight legs in total.

'Then I'll return the favor.'

In Paragon of the Hunt mode, I had more arms and legs than they did. I crossed the two scythe-armed limbs growing from my back and swung.

A hideous crunch rang out, and the strength drained from the creature that had been trying to skewer me. I hurled the cleanly decapitated Screamer's corpse into the air.

The third Screamer, perched up in a tree waiting for its opening to strike, saw its comrade flying straight toward it and hastily dropped down.

I charged the spot where it would land. The creature twisted its body in midair, trying to evade my attack.

'Not a chance!'

The Human-Faced Beasts on my cranial carapace opened their mouths in a chorus and blasted a concentrated sonic wave at the creature. Struck dead-on by the invisible, paralysis-inducing frequency, the Screamer's body seized up rigid.

And then the six horns on my head punched clean through its body.

"Se- self-destr, pro..."

Before it could detonate itself, I seized its head with my combat arms and wrenched it free with all my strength.

"Se, se, se..."

With its spine ripped out wholesale, the Screamer didn't last long before its functions shut down entirely. I tossed the repulsive head carelessly onto the ground, then tore away by hand the remaining scraps still clinging to my horns.

The moment the fight with the Screamers ended, strength drained out of my whole body.

Paragon of the Hunt had expired.

Into the emptied space rushed a violent hunger, as if I had starved for days. The thick layers of carapace that had sheathed my body crumbled away like a sandcastle. The scythe arms on my back withered until they detached outright and fell to the earth — arms that had been wrapped in dense muscle and armor now looked like freshly unearthed mummies.

Aside from the carapace sloughing off, my size had barely changed at all.

Clever Underdog could never exceed five meters no matter how it grew, and Paragon of the Hunt altered only my appearance — my length itself never increased.

The instant the transformation finished and my body's changes ran their course, a voice spoke up.

"Hostile organism. Transmitting combat data to PS-250 intermediate terminal."

It was the Screamer my tail pincer had hammered in the skull. With two-thirds of its head crushed, it was somehow still alive.

'If it self-destructs, it'll be a nuisance.'

Even under the crushing weight of hunger and lethargy, I moved toward the creature to finish it off.

I was drawing near, ready to end it—

"Big Adult!"

'Adhai?'

Adhai's thought-wave suddenly rang out. I turned my head and glimpsed her flying between the trees.

She was struggling desperately through the air, beating her battered wings with everything she had.

"Emergency!" "Kin" "Me" "Spotted!"

'What?'

The instant I grasped the meaning of her thought-wave, I sensed something above my head.

'Wingbeats?'

Realizing what it was, I threw myself backward without a moment's hesitation. Just as I retreated, a colossal white beast crashed down onto the Screamer.

It pulverized the machine into dust, then lowered its gaze to me — amethyst eyes gleaming.

'...You have got to be kidding me.'

A crown of horns upon its head, enormous wings, a reptilian body, and a cluster of tentacles where a mouth should be.

A Galagon — the Dragon of Space — and among them, a being known to be second in power only to the Black Galagon.

The White Galagon — the one creature I would have given anything not to face at this exact moment — stood before me.