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Chapter 162

“Shit, everyone retreat!”

“Hee…heeheek!”

As the captain’s orders were heard, the cyborgs gathered in the situation room panicked and screamed as soon as they faced me. Unlike some of the other cyborgs, they hadn’t modified their eyes, so they quickly recognized my presence.

‘Sometimes ignorance is bliss.’

The reactions of the cyborgs upon seeing me were quite varied.

“Pl-please spare us…spare us…sp…”

Their pleas were cut short. They knelt, hands worn from begging, only to be silenced by a snap at my hands.

“Damn! You’re like a traitor to the Star Union! I’ll personally…”

Another group, expressing anger towards the betrayed captain, rushed towards him, only to have their upper bodies severed by the bone blade arms on my back.

And finally.

“Everyone, take cover behind the barricades!”

“We must subdue him!”

There were few but still courageous cyborgs who attacked me without losing their resolve. They hid behind computers and machinery in the situation room, launching their assault.

Pulse gunshots using Uranium-Tungsten rounds rained down upon me.

Each time, the scales, no, ‘synthetic scales,’ beneath my fur rippled, absorbing the impact of the bullets.

[Synthetic Scales: Replaces the outer layer with synthetic scales. Can harden specific areas using these scales.]

All the outer layers of my body had been replaced by tiny scales. A new trait gained from devouring a Screamer, ‘Synthetic Scales,’ was at play.

The true value of this trait lay in its ability to harden weaknesses in the body. By rearranging the scales in the affected area upon physical impact, temporary defense enhancement was possible.

‘With this trait, I can protect appendages or auxiliary systems from monster tentacles.’

In the guise of a hunter, my auxiliary systems were now covered in armor, but not in ordinary circumstances.

I approached the cyborgs, bullets bouncing off my body.

“Fck! Our attacks are useless…urgh!”

“Everyone retreat! Retreat!”

Even as I closed in, a cyborg bravely firing bullets at me met his demise as my four bone blades under my jaw slashed through him.

The cyborgs nearby, realizing the futility of bullets against me, tried to flee while their comrades were being slaughtered. Those who turned their backs to flee were met with my tail.

“Argh!”

A cyborg relatively close by was struck by my tail and slammed into a wall. Fortunately, he died without much suffering.

“Le-let go!”

A cyborg caught in the pincer at the end of my tail struggled, but soon screamed as the pincer tightened.

The sturdy pincer was part of the hard metal exoskeleton of the Screamer. There was no way the cyborg could withstand it.

The cyborg, now a lifeless mass after vomiting a mix of organs and bodily fluids, was quickly discarded. I chased after the fleeing cyborgs.

“W-wait, wait, please!”

“Hee…heek, stop…ugh! Kuk…kuk!”

Before the hunt’s end, most of the cyborgs within the hull had been dealt with, except for a few.

‘I need to implant parasites.’

The maximum limit for the enhanced ‘Parasitic Colony’ via Type Effect was 10. With one already inside the sky mother, only 9 survivors remained.

“W-we will follow our new master.”

The cyborgs, now dominated by the parasites, kneeled before me atop the bloodied situation room floor.

There were two reasons I spared them.

Currently, there are many androids and drones remaining on this ship. The goal is to neutralize them all. Although it’s permissible for me and the kids to roam around and destroy them, there’s no need to exert effort on those we can’t obtain genetic essence from.

‘And it could serve as insurance when the Star Union comes chasing after us.’

To deceive the pursuers, including the ship’s command, such as the captain, must remain. They might attempt to scan the biosignals of our captain or senior crew members from their end.

‘With this, preparations for taking over the ship are complete.’

Taking control of a military vessel seemed easier than before, perhaps because of increased strength. Aside from encountering the unexpected formidable opponent, the Screamer, it ended smoothly without major variables.

‘Upon closer examination, the gains from the Screamer seem more substantial.’

Aside from obtaining clues about Star Union players, we were able to secure new genetic essences.

In the game, Screamers are classified as machines rather than biological entities, so we couldn’t obtain genetic essences from them.

However, the upgraded Screamers on this ship were different. Being made from Hulk Mutants, we could obtain several types of genetic essences.

‘Getting the Coldblooded trait here was lucky.’

Coldblood is a race with characteristics of reptiles mixed with those of insects, based on a humanoid reptilian base. Despite their frightening appearance, they have high intelligence and gained some cult popularity due to their tragic backstory.

According to the setting, Coldbloods once competed for dominance in the universe alongside the cult, but at this point, they’re completely fallen. They gained power through a contract with the Vortex one, but in return, the fate of their entire race was sealed.

‘Now they’ve descended to being sold as slaves to cultists or other races worshiping the Vortex one.’

Players who choose Coldblood aim to liberate and redeem their suffering brethren.

‘I remember someone in the community called it the Dinosaur Exodus.’

Anyway, because of this setting, Coldbloods are scattered across the universe, often only seen in the late game if luck permits.

So, I thought it would be a while before I could acquire their traits.

‘It’s strange that there are so many Coldbloods on the labor supply ship.’

All the internal organ-related traits I acquired were from Coldblood.

Whether Coldblood genes played a significant role in Screamer development or if the labor supply ship I consumed had an unusually high number of Coldblood, I couldn’t tell.

‘Whatever the cause, it turned out to be beneficial for me.’

The ability to guard weaknesses with Synthetic Scales and the useful Revenant Organ for critical moments were unexpected gifts.

‘Though there are slight regrets.’

While I gained several traits from consuming Screamers, the rest were all traits I already possessed.

Typically, Hulk Mutants are synthesized from various genes, but these Screamers were composed entirely of the same genes, like replicas.

‘Perhaps they were deliberately standardized for use as Screamer material.’

Whether due to their identical genes or not, their appearance and taste were exactly the same.

‘…Thinking about it, it feels somewhat disgusting.’

The taste of the Hulk Mutant used in the Screamers was truly awful. It was so repulsive that I felt an impulse to scratch the inside of my mouth with my nails.

Based on my past experiences, the taste of creatures with a combination of multiple genes was usually decent. Like Shiyeon Yujin and the Knights of the Egerdon Family.

But this time, that rule was broken.

‘It was a disgusting taste.’

It was like when you accidentally put toothpaste on your toothbrush and then drank orange juice. More precisely, it was like adding salt on top of that.

‘With this level of satiety, even when the hunting guise ends… Ah, it’s about to end now.’

Just as the tiger always comes after its roar.

Smoke began to emanate from my body, and my physique started to change. It was the end of the guise of the hunt.

My body, which had grown to about 8 meters, including my tail, returned to 5 meters. The elongated fur shrank to fit my body size, and the bone blade arms protruding from my back quickly shrank.

Gradually, the bone blade arms became like calluses peeling off the skin, then crumbled. The same change occurred on the bone shell that enveloped the auxiliary organ under my chin.

After all the changes were complete, I quickly stuffed the cyborg corpses in the situation room into my mouth. It was to alleviate the hunger that always followed the end of the guise.

But something was off.

‘My stomach doesn’t feel that empty?’

While hunger felt stronger than usual, it wasn’t to the point of losing reason. With this level of hunger, eating a few cyborg corpses would quickly satisfy me.

‘Could this also be due to the astute weakling effect?’

As expected, after devouring three cyborg corpses, the side effects of the guise immediately subsided. Perhaps, as a specialized survival state, it also drastically reduced energy consumption.

‘I thought the decrease in combat power was unfavorable, but….’

Being able to use the guise of the hunt without looking back was a merit. Furthermore, it seemed to match well with the characteristic of consuming massive amounts of stored energy.

‘For instance, the Divine spectre.’

Feasting on the cult’s orbital weapon, the “Brain God” to obtain the “Divine spectre” was my most powerful long-range attack method.

Unlike the original, there was no limitation of once every 14 days, but instead, there was a drawback of reducing power by two-thirds and tremendous energy consumption.

But what if I were to become an astute weakling here? Then, I could use the Divine spectre more freely than usual.

While it’s impossible to go on a rampage, for me, lacking long-range attack methods, it could be a godsend.

It’s regrettable that I can’t operate in such a manner in my normal state yet.

‘There’s no need to regret it. I can obtain it later.’

Having alleviated the side effects of the guise of the hunt, I stood up. Just then, the Mother of the Sky entered the situation room with the kids.

｢You were quite rambunctious. How are the side effects?｣

[ZZZ ZZ ZZZZ ZZ (They’re unexpected boons.)]

She had hidden with the kids in a corner of the ship, possibly in preparation for my potential rampage.

I briefly explained the effect of the astute weakling to her. She nodded as if impressed.

｢It’s certainly a good trait. It usually has quite a wide range of applications.｣

[ZZZ ZZZZ ZZ ZZZZ ZZ (Many weaknesses for infiltration have been greatly improved.)]

｢It would be excellent for blindsiding players. They wouldn’t know about this from their end.｣

She was right. In the game, there’s no known trait that artificially changes Amorph’s size. If I don’t know, it’s highly unlikely that others do.

Our enemies have built a formidable force, operating fleets and deploying orbital weapons. Since I’m still lacking in power to suppress them, I need to respond with infiltration and deception tactics.

While we were discussing her and my traits, Numbers 26 and Adhai approached.

｢Big guy, do you need more food?｣

[I’m full, so you two can eat.]

Understanding my signal, Number 26 extended its tentacles towards the corpses. Adhai, following Number 26, was about to join in the meal when she suddenly looked at me and approached.

[ZZZ ZZZ ZZ (What’s wrong?)]

｢Adult｣ ｢Before｣ ｢Different｣ ｢Now｣ ｢Charming｣ ｢Incomprehensible｣

Swishing her tail, Adhai sent telepathic signals. Her gaze was fixed on the scales inside my fur.

｢Now｣ ｢Good.｣

‘It must be because of the scales.’

While Adhai usually compliments me, my appearance itself is quite different from a Gallagon. It’s hard to call the flight membrane wings, and the carapace and scales on my body are quite distinct from Gallagon scales.

It seems that the change to scales fits Adhai’s taste.

She glanced at me for a moment, then nodded satisfactorily and went over to Number 26.

The Mother of the Sky commented upon seeing me.

｢It’s raining cats and dogs.｣

Meeting her crescent-shaped eyes, I felt somehow embarrassed.

[ZZZZ ZZ ZZZ ZZZ ZZZ ZZ (Enough of the useless chatter. Are you not going to eat?)]

｢As you know, eating cyborgs doesn’t help me. It’s better for the kids to eat.｣

Like me, she also needs to consume the flesh of powerful enemies to grow. Perhaps until we reach the Gallagon’s Nest, her growth will also stagnate.

｢Anyway, I’ve already taken care of all the annoying ones.｣

Now that the assessment of the astute weakling trait is almost finished, it’s time to move on to the next step.

I nodded to the kids who were having their meal and left the situation room.

Finally, the time had come to swallow this Ship 98.

***

“What exactly is your problem?”

“What are you talking about?”

“This cult nonsense! There’s a mountain of things to prepare for the sake of justice, but you’re here listening to the ramblings of such a person and looking for treasure!”

Min-seok Yujin, the caretaker of Si-hyun Yujin’s house, was not pleased with his nonchalant owner.

After the failed assassination of Akira Yujin, Si-hyun Yujin’s actions were full of incomprehensible things to Min-seok.

They needed to quickly subdue the elders of the remaining Yujin family on Earth and build an anti-Akira faction. But instead, they were aimlessly wandering through space.

Originally, Akira Yujin wasn’t very active externally. Apart from what the CEO must do, he spent most of his time on Earth.

The reason why he risked his life to plan the destruction of the T&C Special Trade Center was because it was rare for him to go out.

“With the ongoing civil war, it’s easier to plan an assassination! But why isn’t it working?”

“It’s because with our current strength, we can’t eliminate Akira.”

Si-hyun Yujin casually remarked. She said the same thing every time Min-seok protested.

Killing Akira was impossible.

She had infiltrated the flagship of the Yujin family herself to assassinate Akira. Min-seok could believe that much. As evidence, she brought back the dagger of Code Blue.

But what followed was the problem.

“Are you still saying that Akira has subdued the Shadows? That’s impossible!”

As a close aide to Si-hyun, Min-seok knew how powerful the Shadows were and how powerful Si-hyun was in her prime.

So he couldn’t believe that she had been subdued by Akira and barely escaped.

“I don’t believe it. There seems to be a reason I don’t know.”

Min-seok remained skeptical. Si-hyun’s eyes narrowed as he continued to doubt.

“I am your master. You haven’t forgotten that, have you?”

“… ”

Min-seok remained silent. Si-hyun rose from her seat.

Though Min-seok flinched at her movement, he didn’t avoid her gaze.

“I’ll ask you one last time. Answer carefully.”

“… ”

For a brief moment, his hand moved towards his pocket, then stopped. Si-hyun didn’t miss the gesture.

“Min-seok Yujin. Who do you serve?”

“… Si-hyun Yujin, the rightful heir of the Yujin family.”

He remained loyal to Si-hyun Yujin, the rightful heir.

At first glance, it seemed like a sign of submission to her, but Si-hyun noticed that he deliberately chose an ambiguous expression.

That’s because she was Si-hyun Yujin and at the same time, not Si-hyun Yujin.

In other words, Min-seok meant that the target he was loyal to was the “original” Si-hyun Yujin, not the “replica” in front of him.

Si-hyun understood that point but didn’t bother to mention it. No, to be precise, she couldn’t mention it.

“Go back. I have things to do.”

“…Yes.”

Min-seok also seemed to consider today not the right day to argue further. He made a gesture of farewell and began to leave the office.

As he reached for the doorknob to exit, he muttered to himself softly.

“…And having a competitor by your side. What’s that about? Tsk.”

After Min-seok left the office, Si-hyun, who remained alone, slumped into her chair. She murmured to the empty air.

“I showed a pitiful sight.”

Then, the metal suit standing in the corner of the office moved. It was a suit with a bizarre design, a mix of reinforced armor and walker features, measuring a whopping 2.5 meters in size, and its color was as black as the space outside the spaceship.

Moreover, the metal suit was in the form of a full-body wrap like the reinforced armor worn by the Knights of Ezerton. Resembling an android of the Star Union rather than a human, it spoke in a mechanical voice.

“No, it was more informative than I expected. I gained a lot of information I didn’t know.”

“A cynic, as always. Laila Chembelin.”

The identity of the person in the black metal suit was Laila Chembelin, the former administrator of the T&C Special Trade Center.

“It seems quite comfortable inside the suit if you have time to acquire information.”

“Yes, indeed. Sleeping, eating, doing nothing… It’s amazing not to have to do anything.”

A stark contrast to her nonchalant tone was her mechanical voice. Currently, she was so severely infected with a lethal virus that she couldn’t speak without the help of the machine itself.

Infecting her with such a deadly virus that even genetic manipulation couldn’t cure, she wouldn’t survive for more than a few seconds without that life support suit.

And Si-hyun, who provided her with the suit, was practically holding Laila’s lifeline.

“I misspoke.”

Nevertheless, it was Si-hyun who bowed her head instead. Seeing her reaction, Laila found it interesting and spoke as if amused.

“You’re more interesting than I thought.”

“What do you mean?”

“I’ve seen those who received Shadow’s technique become lunatics, without exception. Bloodthirsty killers, warmongers, extreme obsessive patients, and so on. Of course, you’re no exception.”

“Thanks for the praise.”

“I’d say I’ve seen you… how should I put it? You’re less noble capitalist than Akira Yujin. Your attitude towards the butler earlier and your attitude towards me are the same.”

“It was necessary. If you want something, you take it without hesitation. Isn’t that the principle of the noble capital?”

“Hmm, indeed. ”

Though Laila seemed skeptical, Si-hyun was sincere. Within her heart, a goal that she couldn’t tell others about was rapidly growing.

It wasn’t Si-hyun Yujin or Min-seok’s goal, but her own.

But there was no need to discuss it here. Si-hyun changed the subject.

“There must be a reason you came to see me.”

“Ah, I forgot.”

Laila opened the backpack attached to her suit and took out a white mechanical device. It was a partially damaged drone that had lost some of its functionality.

“I found this while scouting outside. It was almost destroyed, mixed with the rocky clouds.”

“This is a Star Union drone. Why is it here?”

Seeing the number 98 engraved on the drone’s surface, Si-hyun felt a strange sensation for some reason.

She had a strong intuition that there might be very important information inside that drone.

“Are there any other drones besides this one?”

“They all seem to have been destroyed after encountering the rocky clouds.”

“I’ll have to check if the data information is damaged.”

“Is that okay?”

“There might be important information, so it should be fine.”

She unplugged a cable from her office desk and connected it to the drone. Soon, shattered holograms began to float above the desk.

“!”

“What, what is this?”

And upon examining the contents, the two could only be astonished.