Chapter 321
Chapter 321
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 321
Chapter Title: A Familiar Taste
-----------------------------------------------------------------
"How is it?"
"Analysis complete: 75% Berzan 02 cactus, 11% Gormos 03 heaven fruit, 10% Amoria 09 dragon orchid syrup, and 4% other ingredients. An intriguing flavor."
"Glad you like it."
The guy nodded at my words, then suddenly tilted his head.
"I'm not sure if this is the right way to put it, but it feels somehow familiar."
"Familiar?"
"The moment I ingested the liquid, data on a similar composition from my memory banks surfaced. I have no record of inputting such data myself."
Though he'd consumed all sorts of prey up to now, this was the first time he'd reacted like this. Even he seemed unsettled by the idea of recalling memories he didn't know he had.
'Data without any record of input.'
PS-111 was a mutant screamer crafted by pooling the powers of various rankers from the Dominion faction. And one of the key materials was the brain of an intelligent being.
I'd once seen footage from Pira Eleven, one of Star Union's mechanical committees, showing how PS-111 was made. It depicted the process of transplanting a cloned Coldblood's brain into the screamer machinery.
'Memories from the past?'
The current PS-111 had been reborn through Specimen 026's power after suffering massive bodily damage. His ruined brain had been restored in a form different from the original, wiping out most of his memories.
'But not all of them were lost.'
What he called familiar might stem from memories of drinking this liquor before becoming a screamer.
"Maybe you drank this before you became a screamer?"
"Me?"
"Yeah. If it's a memory the 'current you' doesn't recognize, it has to be from your past."
Hearing that, he fell silent and stared blankly at the bottle. His red lens reflected the caramel-colored liquid at the bottom.
After a moment of quiet, he slowly nodded.
"A valid point. There's a 51% chance this liquor is connected to my past."
"Once this job's done, let's investigate the liquor too."
"Thank you."
His metal-skinned face made expressions hard to read. He looked as impassive as ever, but knowing his situation, he seemed deeply troubled.
"Want more? Might jog more memories."
"If you would."
As I reached for the wooden cask to pour, he leaned his face close to it. Then, just like me, he stuck out his tongue and lapped up the flowing liquid.
"Fascinating how the taste differs so much from the main ingredients."
He licked the liquor from his cold lips as he said that.
Just then, Specimen 026 bounced over upon seeing us and wedged itself between us.
｢Friend, you can't eat it like that. Human food goes in a bowl.｣
"I'm not human, so this is fine."
｢No. Human food can't be eaten like that.｣
With Specimen 026 butting in, my conversation with him ended there.
After that, the booze-up at the Cult mansion continued until the storeroom was completely drained.
"You're leaving?"
In the reception room of the Cult-style mansion.
Sihyun Yujin nodded at the question from the elderly Cult, Kisos.
"Yes. Thanks to you, Congressman, I've secured plenty of equipment and slaves. You've invested in me, so I need to show results."
"Mega Corp's emperor won't be an easy mark. Aren't you short on resources?"
"Mega Corp is on the verge of a ceasefire right now. With the long wartime system unraveling, society's in chaos. This is the perfect chance to take out the CEO."
"Hmm."
Sihyun's words rang true.
True to her role as leader of the reformists emphasizing interspecies exchange, Kisos had deep connections in Mega Corp. She knew just how weakened their faction had become.
"I heard one of the seven nobles propping up Mega Corp fell, bringing recession. The emperor and nobles are fretting over it."
"That's right."
"I see."
With that, Kisos fell silent, calculating in her head.
It didn't take long for her to conclude that Sihyun leaving would benefit her more.
"Sihyun of the Yujin Family. May providence grant your wish."
"Thank you."
After a formal bow, Sihyun left the reception room.
Walking the corridor, she soon slumped against the wall. Nightmares and headaches had piled up lately, robbing her of sleep.
She'd checked for gene mod side effects, but nothing showed. The research team leader handling the tests said it seemed psychological.
True enough, meds didn't touch the nightmares or headaches. The bio capsule helped her rest a bit, but even that time was shrinking.
"...Hoo."
Leaning her head against the cool wall eased the pain slightly. With a small sigh, she started walking again. As she exited the corridor into the colonnade, a familiar figure approached from the opposite side.
"Sihyun Yujin? What are you doing here?"
"Hello, Alshas."
The other was Alshas, a Cult woman with shining silver hair. Her eyes widened in surprise at Sihyun's presence.
"I came to pay my respects to Kisos before leaving Berzan 02."
"I see. So you're really going."
"Thanks to your introduction to Kisos, I got great help. I'll visit properly to thank you later."
Alshas appearing at Kisos's mansion likely meant she had an appointment too. After a light greeting, Sihyun moved to leave.
"Wait."
"Yes?"
Alshas stopped her and pulled a small data chip from her pocket.
"Take this."
"What's this?"
"I heard from my senior you're hunting mysterious relics. This is a map I picked up a while back."
Her mention of a map made Sihyun's heart race. Her black eyes fixed on the chip in Alshas's palm.
"A map?"
"It's embarrassing to call it that, honestly. It's incomplete."
"Incomplete..."
"I asked a contact in the Prophets' Society. Seems like it's for some altar hiding a mystery weapon, but no more details were available."
In truth, the odds of Alshas's chip meshing with Beomho's damaged map were slim to none—unless someone engineered it that way.
Yet her instincts screamed otherwise. A powerful certainty that this chip was the key to restoring the broken map.
Suppressing her emotions with reason, Sihyun asked Alshas.
"Why give me a map leading to a hidden weapon?"
"I'm curious, sure, but I'm captain of the Imperial Mothership. Can't chase uncertain leads recklessly. You don't have those constraints, though."
"True, but..."
"Like the elder, I've invested in you. Your success benefits me too. So take it."
Meeting Alshas's gaze, Sihyun sensed her sincerity. The Cult woman truly wanted her to have this map—no hidden motives.
"You're a key piece in the grand plan. No need to worry."
"...Thank you."
In the end, Sihyun accepted the data chip.
Aimorphs gain immunity to most poisons upon reaching Near-Adult stage, thanks to the 'Complete Immunity Body' trait earned as a Near-Adult perk.
Even after chugging massive amounts of booze, my body showed no change.
'No buzz from the start.'
Truth be told, an Aimorph body wouldn't get drunk even without Complete Immunity Body. Superior metabolism would've broken down the alcohol in no time.
The others were much the same. Specimen 026 and PS-111 drained dozens of casks without batting an eye.
Not everyone was totally sober, though. Adhai visibly perked up with each sip.
'Same reaction as when he ate the Hellside Hornet pupa.'
The other Gallerons drinking the pupa fluid back then had looked just as pleased. Like wild animals savoring fermented fruit.
Adhai just didn't realize his body could handle getting drunk. Wasted, he romped around the room before curling up in my arms and passing out.
'And now he's sleeping in the mansion owner's room.'
｢Adhai's still out, huh.｣
"Yeah."
The Mother of the Sky, towel slung over her shoulder, glanced toward the room as she spoke.
She'd bathed right after waking—droplets clung to her fur. The wet pelt hugged her curves, outlining her figure perfectly.
'Even advancing her deification stage didn't change much.'
Her naked back bore agate-colored wing tattoos. Wings got cumbersome outside battle, so she stored them as tattoos. Probably switched to tattoos deliberately to avoid drying wet wings.
Aside from the tattoos, she looked the same as before.
｢So when do you plan to meet that slave we suspect is the one?｣
The beautiful Griffon Wolf dried her fur with the towel as she asked. I averted my eyes from her body and shared my thoughts.
"Today if possible. Just a distant look to confirm."
｢Today? That soon?｣
"Gotta consider she might not be rank 22. Better check before any direct contact."
｢Fair point.｣
"Once Roberts is squared away, we move. Check the big warehouse on the way."
｢Hope we don't need the warehouse.｣
Before hunting Roberts, I'd rented the large warehouse for two reasons.
Officially, we entered the fortress to sell rare creatures. Renting under Charas's name kept the paperwork clean.
Second, to prepare for a prolonged rank 22 search. When Clever Weakling expired, I'd revert to my 60-meter true form. Needed a safe spot to hole up, hence the pre-rented warehouse.
'Insurance, basically.'
Best if we finished without it, but life's unpredictable. No guarantees, so prep ahead.
"Unless something comes up, that's the plan. Speak up if you see issues."
｢Issues?｣
She squinted slightly and pointed at my chest.
｢That body.｣
"Huh?"
｢You look like a Cult in a bathrobe right now.｣
That jogged my memory.
The last Roberts I'd devoured was near-naked. 'Mimicry Organ' made others perceive me as the intelligent being I'd eaten via pheromones.
Great for disguise and infiltration, but fatal flaws: useless against machines or creatures without pheromone senses, and I couldn't control my perceived appearance.
'Can't change looks is the real pain.'
Luckily, 'Human-Face Parasite Host' mitigated it somewhat. It stored up to five gene profiles. Mimicry Organ analyzed devoured genes for pheromones, but I could pull from stored ones too.
Jason stayed fixed as key intel source; the other four swapped as needed. For fortress infiltration, I'd donned 'Charas's' skin.
"This better?"
｢...Gives me chills every time. Voice changes perfectly—creepier.｣
She stuck out her tongue at my spot-on Knowledge Manager Charas impression.
'Outfit's good.'
With my look switched, I used the terminal pad to contact Roberts's secretary in his voice.
｢Master?｣
"Sudden business came up. Can't come to the shop for a bit."
｢Wait, what? But yesterday you said...｣
"Yesterday?"
｢You warned someone suspicious might break in, so we beefed security. Wolf slave caught a weird scent.｣
"I handled it—no worries. Stand down all guards. Oh, and pull bonuses from the books for yesterday's crew. Extra for that Wolf slave."
｢Got it!｣
"Good work."
I ended the call in Roberts's voice. The Mother of the Sky watched, shaking her head in disbelief.
｢Too natural.｣
"Not my first rodeo."
｢Not practice—must be the bloodline...｣
I ignored her muttering and tidied up Roberts's death. Deleted leftover camera footage from monitoring and evacuation rooms, canceled the warrior squad report to nullify it.
No one in Water Fortress would know a slave trader had died.
With cleanup done, I left the mansion alongside MPS-05, the Mother of the Sky.