Chapter 90
Chapter 90
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 90
Chapter Title: qiqi iykow gkk-90i
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 90
Chapter Title: Ep. 90
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The patrol ships pursuing Adhai numbered three in total.
Those rectangular box-like spacecraft, 40 meters long, were the Aegis model small patrol ships utilized by Mega Corp.
Of course, even "small" meant they were equipped with four plasma cannons each, so charging in recklessly wasn't an option.
'What to do.'
The surroundings offered only the ruins Black had destroyed with his psychic breath beams—hardly suitable for hiding.
'If I'm going to flee, I should use the underground passage the kids took to get here.'
But escaping underground in this situation wasn't a great choice either.
Adhai was already being chased down. Trying to hide recklessly could result in taking a plasma round, which would be disastrous.
'Moreover, Adhai's injured.'
The scent of human blood mixed with his own emanated from his body.
If I wasn't planning to abandon him here, I couldn't burden him further.
'To buy time, there has to be some way... Ah.'
Come to think of it, when I lost consciousness, No. 26 had tossed me the bodies of Black and the Cult as food.
'After eating Black, a text box definitely popped up.'
I hadn't been in my right mind, so I only vaguely registered something flickering before my eyes—I hadn't checked the details.
I hurriedly pulled up the text boxes.
All of them were powerful traits. And one in particular was exactly what I needed right now.
I accepted them all, and new translucent text boxes appeared as mutations began in my body.
'Dragon's Majesty' trait applied. Can fuse with existing 'X-Ray Vision'. 'Dragon's Majesty' and 'X-Ray Vision' traits fused. Evolved into 'Terror Gazer' trait! Terror Gazer: Instills indescribable terror into a single specific intelligent being. Chance to drive target insane.
*P.S.: No need to explain what the oldest human emotion is, right?
'Pain Spear' trait applied. Can fuse with existing 'Breath of Fire'. 'Pain Spear' and 'Breath of Fire' traits fused. Evolved into 'Rot Fungus Organ' trait! Rot Fungus Organ: Expels fungal spores that degrade and corrupt the enemy's natural healing abilities.
*P.S.: Decay is another form of the cycle.
This mutation centered around my head and its surroundings.
It started with an itch around my eyes, spreading across my entire head.
The surface of my exoskeleton dipped inward or bulged outward in changes, and my horns curved forward with spiral patterns forming on them.
When I previously acquired the psionic enhancement type, geometric patterns had been etched into the carapace covering my head. Now, eye-like motifs were added atop them.
True to the name 'Terror Gazer', it gave the impression of countless eyes within my head surveilling the outside world.
The changes weren't limited to my head.
The ignition organ in my throat vanished, replaced by a new one that produced and launched microorganisms. Thanks to this new organ, my neck thickened considerably.
The 'Resistance' trait caused internal changes, so nothing was visibly apparent on the outside.
'Good.'
Having completed my evolution with the new traits, I called out to No. 26.
[Zuuuu... Zz zz zuzuzu zz (Must catch the humans chasing Adhai)]
"Humans? You mean the food with four appendages?"
[Zz (Yeah)]
It wasn't wrong, so I didn't correct her.
[Zz zuzuzu zz zuzuzuzu zz (Humans are riding inside those metal boxes)]
"Yeah. I can sense them."
[Zz zzuzuzu zuzuzu (Can't catch them all by myself)]
"Okay! I'll help!"
Good thing she caught on quick.
One patrol ship might be manageable alone, but three was too much. I'd need No. 26's help here.
[Zuzuzu zz zz (You have power)]
"Power?"
[Zuzuzu zuzuzuzu zz (Power to drive humans insane)]
If she could properly utilize the 'Deep Sea Terror' trait, we could neutralize the crew aboard the patrol ships.
'In the game, Sea Demons often focused Deep Sea Terror on tanks or supports.'
The debuff from a concentrated Deep Sea Terror was overwhelmingly potent—even those with strong resistances couldn't fully block it.
'This is reality, so it might differ...'
Besides, the distance between us and the patrol ships was considerable. Even if No. 26 used Deep Sea Terror, I wasn't sure if it would reach the ships.
'No. Thinking negatively gets me nowhere.'
No. 26 was still small, but she was a Sea Demon nonetheless.
'She can do it.'
Moreover, she was clever. If she grasped the knack, she'd pull it off.
[Zz zuzuzu zz (Concentrate your power)]
"Okay. Uuuuuh!"
While No. 26 trembled, focusing her power, I checked on Adhai.
He was circling the skies above this area, the patrol ship hot on his tail. He dodged their barrages with godlike flight maneuvers, but his speed was dropping.
'He won't last much longer like this.'
[Zuzuzu zz zuzuzu zuzuzu zuzuzu (Make your target clear and think of grabbing it)]
"Grab it?"
[Zz zzuzuzu zz (Yeah. Never let go)]
"I'll try."
I wasn't even sure if what I said was correct.
I'd simply described, in brief, the sensation of focusing auxiliary senses on a target.
But it seemed to help No. 26 quite a bit.
The multicolored aura roiling over her body converged into a massive eye shape.
"Got it!"
No. 26 fired her psychic wave, brimming with joy.
At that instant, my auxiliary organs stiffened, issuing a warning.
A highly dangerous presence lay ahead.
Battle arms and legs tensed with contraction, acidic blood surging faster through my veins.
This feeling was just like my first encounters with Sihyun Yujin or Black.
'Success.'
No. 26's Deep Sea Terror effect must have affected me.
As expected, the fear gripping my heart vanished quickly once I recognized it and shook it off.
[Zuzuzu (Well done)]
"Am I awesome? Awesome, right?"
[Zuzz (Yeah)]
I stroked the delighted No. 26.
If even I felt fear, regular crewmen stood no chance.
[Zuzuzuzu zuzuzu (Throw me like before)]
"Okay."
Her thick tentacle coiled around my waist.
"Here goes!"
The tentacle holding me shook violently, launching me into the air.
In my hunting form, I was 5 meters long (tail excluded) and heavy, so No. 26 couldn't throw me high.
But now, smaller and lighter, I rocketed toward the patrol ships at high speed.
In midair, I extended my battle arms, firing bloodsucking tentacles toward the patrol ship.
The red tentacles latched on, tiny serrations on their surface digging into the hull.
With my body secured, I reeled in the tentacles, clinging to the patrol ship.
The crew must have noticed my boarding—the two left-side turrets swiveled to target me.
I flattened myself to dodge the first shot and crawled toward the nearest turret.
Upon reaching it, I activated Ghost Claws and plunged my hand inside.
Deactivating only the claw tips, I severed the electrical circuits.
'One down.'
The turret aiming at me glitched and powered down.
The remaining one tried to fire, but I'd prepared for that.
The gill plates on my back clashed together, emitting waves that disrupted machinery.
Sparks flew from the plasma turret's joints, neutralizing it.
Highjack successful—the turret was now under my control.
The two turrets on the opposite side couldn't target me due to my position in their blind spot.
'External threats neutralized.'
Auxiliary organs detected crew shouts from inside the hull.
The enemy was panicking over this unforeseen assailant.
'Not enough yet.'
If they radioed the other ships to shoot me, I'd be done for.
I needed to sow more chaos.
My auxiliary organs writhed, seeking out the crew member with the strongest metallic scent.
While they worked, I used the highjacked turret to target another ship.
Screams and curses intensified inside as the turret unleashed a blazing green energy orb.
The orb streaked away, slamming into the rear of another patrol ship.
The hit ship shuddered violently but continued flying without major issues.
'Direct control is tricky, as expected.'
Meanwhile, my auxiliary organs located the target.
I activated Terror Gazer on him, then crawled along the ship's side.
At the hatch door, I used Ghost Claws to smash the internal terminal.
'Let's wrap this up quick.'
Ripping open the half-ajar door, I entered the patrol ship.
"Damn it! Left turret one neutralized!"
"Left turret two out of control too! Do something!"
"Only way is to shut down the firing assist AI and restart it!"
Inside Patrol Ship 1408 of the Defense Fleet, chaos reigned.
They'd been pursuing a green flying object moments ago when an unknown enemy ambushed them.
"Where'd it go?! Not on the right camera!"
"Spotted on upper camera! What the hell is it doing?"
"Whatever it is, get it off!"
While the bridge crew scrambled countermeasures against the monster, the defense troops aboard kept vigilant watch around them.
Soldier 13, like his comrades, stayed tense for any emergency.
Suddenly, all lights inside the ship went out.
The noisy clamor aboard vanished in an instant.
"Huh?"
Flustered, Soldier 13 gripped his Gauss rifle, scanning ahead.
"W-What is this?"
Emergency lights flickered on, bathing the interior in red. The sight that greeted him left him aghast.
Crew members lay torn apart on the cold metal floor, grotesque monsters devouring the corpses.
"U-Uwaaaack!"
"Hey, what's wrong?"
As he screamed, someone placed a hand on his shoulder.
Thinking it a comrade, Soldier 13 turned—and froze.
A monster identical to those eating the bodies grinned at him.
Black blood oozed from its eye sockets, its mouth torn to its ears as it bared fangs at him.
"D-Dieeee!"
Soldier 13 fired his Gauss rifle at the monster.
A hole the size of a ping-pong ball punched through its abdomen, and it collapsed.
The feasting monsters screeched and charged him.
"Uwaaa! Die! Die! Dieeee!"
Each burst dropped another monster.
As if realizing their ally was dead, hordes poured from other rooms.
As Soldier 13 aimed at them, a metal slug from somewhere pierced his skull.
Only then did he realize who the monster he'd killed was.
"Fuck! You crazy bastard!"
"Hey! Snap out of it! Hold on just a bit longer!"
"Medic!"
"HQ! This is 1408! Soldier 13 went mad and shot friendlies!"
No time for regret—Soldier 13's mind sank into darkness.
'Success.'
Thanks to the soldier hit by Terror Gazer, 7 of the 20 aboard were dead.
'A downgraded Deep Sea Terror, but plenty useful.'
Terror Gazer was like a single-target version of Deep Sea Terror.
Unlike the original, the insanity effect was probabilistic, but it was still a formidable trait.
'Especially perfect for disrupting enemies like now.'
While they floundered, I raced through the patrol ship's corridors.
The soldier who'd lost it from Terror Gazer had gone on a shooting spree in the bridge, drawing all the defense troops there.
Before they noticed, I sprinted down the halls, picking off crew as I went.
"P-Please! Spare... Gack!"
I yanked off the head of the kneeling crewman, chewed it once, and swallowed.
Devouring the body en route to the bridge, bullets suddenly flew from ahead.
'Tungsten rounds. No good.'
Standard rounds couldn't penetrate my exoskeleton.
I shoved my head against the bridge door and opened my maw wide.
The microorganism organ in my throat activated, spewing a mold-filled mass from my mouth.
"Agh! Fuck!"
The mold spores arced over the soldiers' heads, bursting inside the bridge.
It sounded like dumping a bag of food waste on the floor—the mass exploded.
"What is this... Urk! Bleeech!"
"Grahhh! Guh... Aaaack..."
Screams erupted from soldiers hit by the fragments.
The Rot Fungus Organ, fusion of Pain Spear and Breath of Fire, produced entirely different effects from its components.
It inherited only Pain Spear's healing degradation and Breath of Fire's expulsion via mouth—the rest was unique.
'It's an infection-based fusion trait, after all.'
Rot Fungus Organ generated fungal spores that necrotized and decayed wounds.
Upon bursting, the mold spread, infecting other organisms.
To counter infection required antifungal agents or treatments to remove the mold.
'Easy if they keep a clear head, but impossible mid-battle.'
In the game, players hit by these spores entered panic status. Canonically, infected beings endured real-time agony as their bodies rotted from within.
Without help nearby, self-treatment was impossible.
"U-Ughhhh..."
"Kuhhhh..."
The soldiers, vomiting or screaming from excruciating pain, were reduced to shallow breathing.
Their faces were covered in nail-sized pustules; uniforms soaked with sweat, blood, and pus.
Some already rotted internally, black blood leaking from noses and mouths.
Confirming the crew fully incapacitated, I entered the bridge.
'Wish I could pilot it myself, but warships are beyond me alone.'
A small scout ship maybe, but patrol ships required too many limbs for manual control. Best I could do was AI autonomous navigation.
'Regrettable, but it'll have to do.'
I set course for the friendly patrol ship on radar and input full throttle to the AI.
The engines roared; the bridge shook violently as the ship charged ahead.
I backtracked the way I'd come.
Climbing outside, one of the remaining two ships was already plummeting to the ground.
No. 26 must have disrupted its crew with Deep Sea Terror from below.
Meanwhile, the ship I'd boarded closed rapidly on the enemy. They belatedly realized its intent and veered sharply.
As the ships grazed past, I extended bloodsucking tentacles to transfer to the other.
The mold-infected ship, pilotless, veered toward the domed city in the distance.
"Adult!"
Adhai spotted me from afar, sending a psychic wave.
'Greetings later.'
Only this last ship remained under me.
One small patrol ship and its 20 crew. They were the final enemies.
Had they sacrificed and shot the ship I boarded, things wouldn't have gone this way.
They chose poorly. Now, their only option was to be ravaged.
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