Daily Life at Icarus Base
They were actually sending praise the admins' way for spotting the balance problem and nipping it in the bud before anyone even bought the thing.
Of course, given the kind of people who played this game, it was never going to be nothing but praise.
[Screenshot of the update adding ‘Mint Choco Ice Cream Juice’ to the ‘Perfect SolxEye Recipe Vending Machine’.jpg]
You absolute morons.
What the hell are you putting in the vending machine right now, you sons of bitches.
…(omitted)…
[Screenshot of them adding mint choco ice cream juice.jpg]
That’s right.
Now you’ve finally got the hang of it.
Keep doing it like this from now on.
Everywhere you looked, the shadow Mint Choco Army was clashing with the anti–Mint Choco forces that despised them, and the whole place was descending into chaos. Figuring that was enough for one day, I decided to wrap things up and leave the rest for tomorrow. I parted ways with Grigori—wearing nothing but suspenders over bare skin—and Nero, then headed straight back to my room, washed up, and flopped onto the mattress to scroll the gallery until I fell asleep.
Daily life at Icarus Base.
The next morning.
I woke to a genuinely refreshing good morning, munched on the simple toast the base cooks had provided the way I always did, and set off for the pleasant commute to the command center.
The moment I settled into my dedicated command seat, Jessica glided up beside me exactly as she always did.
“Commander, today’s daily quests.”
“Mm.”
“And this is your morning coffee to wake you up. No cream, no sugar.”
“The usual juicy menu, I see.”
I nodded in satisfaction at the familiar daily-quest briefing and morning beverage. After that perfectly ordinary start to the morning, I looked out through the massive exterior window of the command center…
—Kueeeeng!
—Kieeeeeek!
—Kkieng!
…and found the three Krakens, including the newly recruited one, floating companionably side by side.
—Kwaddeudeuk!
—Kwaduk!
—Kwajijik!
“Oh…”
“They’re having their breakfast nice and early. Very punctual of them.”
No—what I was actually watching was the three of them latched onto the flank of a passing unaffiliated pirate battleship, gnawing it down the way a pod of orcas takes apart a shark.
To be precise, right beside the ships they were eating, the Pirate Union fleets Marianne had brought were holding other unaffiliated pirate vessels in place. The moment the Krakens finished one, the fleet would send over the next detained ship as fresh feed.
“What is that, omakase?”
“What’s that, Commander?”
“…There’s such a thing.”
Obviously none of this could happen inside the base, so the entire process was taking place outside Tannhäuser. Anyone docking at the fortress or living nearby could see the whole show, which meant…
[The three Krakens toss aside a medium battleship that’s been reduced to nothing but hull plating, and Pirate Union salvage ships immediately start towing a fresh vessel over.jpg]
For real.
Once the three Krakens finish eating, they collect the armor plates themselves and get the next detained ships as feed.
Watching them eat feels weirdly like watching someone demolish a lobster. Kinda surreal.
Last pic is just the three Kraken sisters amicably splitting a battleship.
Why am I posting this?
Honestly? Just go look for yourselves.
[gif of the three Krakens gnawing the side of a battleship]
It’s basically like watching YouTube pet videos. Come get some free healing and then leave.
Watching the Krakens’ impromptu morning mukbang go live like that out of nowhere, I could already see an unseasonable wave of Kraken healing content (???) sweeping the gallery among the Tannhäuser users.
I finished stuffing the rest of my toast into my mouth while I watched them eat.
After wrapping up breakfast to the three Krakens’ mukbang, I turned to Jessica.
“Jessica, where’s Marianne right now?”
“She had business on the Pirate Union side, so she should be over at Eclipse for a while.”
“Then get in touch with that feeding fleet and tell them they can stop sending ship feed now.”
“What? Already?”
“Yeah. No. 1 and No. 2 are fine… but looking at No. 3’s belly, it’s one step away from overeating.”
“Ah.”
I had her contact the Pirate Union and end the Krakens’ mealtime. Then, watching No. 1 and No. 2 drag the still-screeching No. 3 away by the tentacles—growth phase or not, the little one was still begging for more—I decided it was time to check on the fleet’s status.