BXBX NOVEL Chapter 176
Chapter 176
｢Look, everyone! My new friend!｣
[Pleased to meet you, wild creatures. I am PS-111. I serve as the main controller, ‘Sea Demon,’ and the sub-controller, ‘Unidentified Hostile Organism.’ Please take care of me.]
“Don’t call me ‘Unidentified Hostile Organism,’ just call me Aimo for short.”
[Confirmed. Changing the code name of the sub-controller.]
Perched atop Number 26, the Mother of the Sky, seeing the human woman introducing herself, opened her mouth in astonishment. Her gaze wavered and then turned toward me. It was a look asking if what she thought was correct.
‘Yes, what you’re thinking is correct.’
While the eagle-faced Mother of the Sky was surprised, Adhai kept nodding as if something was odd.
｢Adult｣ ｢Me｣ ｢Question｣
[ZZZ ZZZZ (What happened?)]
｢That｣ ｢Speech｣ ｢Strange｣
Adhai immediately noticed that the wavelengths emitted by PS-111 were awkward.
[ZZZZ ZZ ZZZZ ZZZ (Because it is injured.)]
｢Injured.｣
[ZZZ (Probably.)]
I don’t know what PS-111 originally looked like. The Screamer I hunted was a lower model, the S model, so it probably looked different from its original form.
‘Whatever it was, if only the head remains, it should be considered fatal.’
Of course, PS-111 is unlikely to feel pain due to injuries. Thanks to its Sea Demon genes, it can relocate vital organs. From the outside, it may seem like only the head remains, but inside, there are the brain and basic digestive organs.
However, explaining this to Adhai would be too complicated, so I decided to skip it.
｢That｣ ｢Injury｣ ｢Serious｣ ｢Pity｣
[Since you’re older, please help it more.]
｢Me｣ ｢Older｣
Though I didn’t ask directly, it’s highly probable. In the game setting, Screamers don’t live more than a year.
PS-111 is a new model Screamer, but even so, the likelihood of a long lifespan is low. At best, it wouldn’t have lasted more than a few years.
Anyway, having heard my words, Adhai, whether it was fascinating to see a younger organism than herself or not, ran eagerly toward Number 26 and PS-111.
[Based on the external analysis of the wildlife, ‘Green Gallagon’ matches 78%.]
｢Little one, befriend your friend.｣
｢Sick child｣ ｢Pity｣ ｢Help｣
“Friends should also get along with little ones. Got it?”
[In accordance with the main controller’s command, reclassify the grade of ‘Green Gallagon (78%)’ to sub-controller 2 ‘Little One.’ Please take care of me. Little One.]
｢Sick child｣ ｢Speech｣ ｢Strange｣ ｢Me｣ ｢Education｣ ｢Possible｣
｢Yeah! Little One is nice!｣
｢Thank you for Little One’s support.｣
The sight of three monsters brimming with personality chatting amicably with each other was quite intriguing. Especially Adhai, who seemed quite different from her usual self when with the Mother of the Sky. She was showing a warm attitude towards PS-111.
｢Is she feeling a sense of responsibility for seeing a younger creature than herself?｣
Or perhaps she’s judging based on similar physical defects to hers.
As I watched the creatures getting along well, the Mother of the Sky called me over.
｢What’s going on? Taming a Screamer, was that even possible?｣
[ZZZ ZZZZ ZZ (I didn’t do it.)]
She seemed puzzled by the existence of friendly Screamers. It wasn’t unreasonable for her reaction since they always appeared as enemies in the game. I would have likely thought similarly if I hadn’t seen it myself.
I summarized the recent events for her.
“Did Number 26 say that it’s a new mutant Screamer, and it took over its control?”
[ZZZ (Yes.)]
[ZZZ ZZZ ZZZZ ZZ ZZZZ ZZZ ZZZZ ZZZ (A Screamer using psychic powers. Just as you said. Someone seems to be compensating for the Screamers’ weaknesses.)]
Agreeing with my inference, she sighed.
｢Cloé Garamelda, perhaps. I have a rough idea who it might be.｣
｢Probably 12th. Among the Mega Corp rankers, there’s a player who focuses on weapon development. They used to supply weapons to players hostile to us as a specialist in rare equipment crafting.｣
｢Last time, Murial mentioned two sponsors. One named Jason, a cult player, and the other was unknown, right?｣
[ZZZZ ZZZ ZZ (That’s right.)]
“You speculated that the unknown might be from the Garamelda faction.”
[ZZZ ZZZZ ZZ ZZZZ ZZZ (Are you saying they’re the same person?)]
She nodded.
｢If it’s a ranker with expertise in equipment crafting, there are only two. Since the 1st has already died, the remaining one is only 12th.｣
[ZZZZ ZZ ZZZ ZZZZ ZZ (I heard the 12th is a man, though?)]
｢In the game, you can choose your gender. We can’t be sure if it’s true.｣
[True.]
It’s a valid point. Just because it’s like that in the game doesn’t mean it’s the same here.
‘I need to be careful.’ It’s been over six months since I arrived in this world, but sometimes I still rely on game logic.
‘Keep all possibilities open. Stay vigilant.’
With that resolve, I continued my conversation with the Mother of the Sky.
[ZZZZ ZZ ZZZZ ZZZ ZZZ ZZ ZZZZ ZZZ ZZ (If there’s a connection between the one helping Murial and the Screamer developer, that one becomes even more important.)]
｢We’ll have to investigate further to see if that’s really the case.｣
[ZZZZ ZZ ZZZZ ZZZ ZZ ZZZZZ ZZ ZZZZ (If it was the former main controller of PS-111, ‘Pyra Eleven,’ they might know something more.)]
Capturing Pyra Eleven, the former main controller of PS-111, might yield more information.
‘If it’s just the timing that’s the issue.’
Whether to capture and tame the Black Gallagon, or to do it beforehand, is a dilemma. If the new model Screamers have a connection with players, then their commander, Pyra Eleven, would likely be the same. He could observe our fight with the Black Gallagon and transmit that information to the players.
‘But it’s not easy to go after the Screamers first either.’
Normally, launching a preemptive strike on Pyra Eleven would have been advantageous, but the situation isn’t good.
We’ve already confirmed that the Gallagons are acting abnormally. If we rashly go after the Screamers and get caught by the Gallagon herd, there’s a risk of forming a double front. Based on the combat capabilities of the Screamers we’ve encountered so far and the information provided by PS-111, it’s evident that they are formidable foes. They may be weaker than the Black Gallagon, but they’re still not easy opponents.
Fighting both of those enemies simultaneously would be suicide.
‘Should I go for the fishing village? No, there’s still too little information.’
This part, I think I should decide after extracting more information about Pyra Eleven from PS-111.
‘Let’s finish preparing for the Apex hunt until we’re certain.’
Capturing predators on this planet and obtaining useful traits from them will ensure smooth combat against whoever we face.
‘Additionally, unlocking the Mother of the Sky’s Wendigo transformation ability.’
As I organized my thoughts internally, Number 26 and PS-111 approached us.
[Main controller, I have a question. What species are the wild animals next to you?]
｢Wild animals…｣
[Gallagon-like psychic powers detected. Presumed to be highly intelligent beings.]
｢Friend. This one’s a middle baby.｣
[Information uncertain. No results found for the creature named Middle baby.]
While the Mother of the Sky, treated like a wild animal, looked bewildered, I briefly explained her to PS-111.
“She’s a Wolf elevated to divine status, so she has transformation abilities.”
[Is this a mutant Wolf with manifesting deviant traits? Updating internal database.]
｢The Middle One is a great one who handles bad guys well. Get along.｣
[Reclassifying to Sub-controller 3 ‘Middle One.’ Nice to meet you, Middle One.]
｢…Y-yeah.｣
The surreal situation of the monsters and synthetics conversing, facilitated by C Demon, seemed bewildering to the Mother of the Sky. Ignoring her attitude, the one creature and one synthetic who had finished their casual introductions headed towards Adhai.
[A special metal device has been detected from the little one.]
｢Don’t touch that. It’s brought by the big one.｣
｢Adult｣ ｢Friend｣ ｢Both｣ ｢Available｣ ｢Sick child｣ ｢Confirmed｣ ｢Desire?｣
[ZZZZ ZZ ZZZZ ZZZ ZZ ZZZ (Absorbing that device will help with quick recovery…)]
The three monsters, huddled together, started chattering with signals and mental waves. Seeing them seemingly getting along caught the Mother of the Sky off guard.
｢…You, surprisingly, are good at collecting monsters.｣
[ZZZ (Yeah.)]
｢I thought I was used to this kind of thing.｣
If another player saw this combination, they’d go crazy. She murmured softly, but I didn’t bother replying.
The three of us who had been talking for about an hour fell asleep again. The Mother of the Sky, perhaps exhausted from consecutive battles since morning, quickly dozed off too.
The only beings awake in the nest were me and the headless Screamer, PS-111. It swam through the swamp that surrounded the nest and approached me.
[Amorph. Aren’t you going to sleep?]
“I have things to think about.”
Earlier, I had tried to look into the newly opened ‘Trait Enhancement’ system before bed. Since Number 26 had slipped out of the nest without my knowledge, I decided to check it out now.
After sending PS-111 away, as I tried to display a translucent textbox, it floated in front of me.
“Do you have something to say?”
[Yes. According to the information obtained from the Middle One, this 70L-grade Tactical Backpack belongs to Amorph. Is that correct?]
It pointed with its small metal leg to the backpack containing the equipment I secured from Muriel. Inside the bag that Adhai usually carries on his back are the ‘Divine Spectre’ and eight ‘Blood Rivers,’ the only-grade weapons of the Star Union.
The ‘Devourer’s Amorphous Polyhedron’ obtained by killing players and devouring unique-grade equipment has the effect of converting them into unique traits. Thanks to this, I currently possess the trait ‘Scepter of the Gods’ after absorbing the cult’s orbital weapon, the ‘Brain God.’
Since the Divine Spectre and Blood Rivers could also be used for consumption, I carry them around.
“That’s mine indeed. Why do you ask?”
[I need three ‘Blood Rivers’ metal mechanical devices inside. If you absorb those devices, you can expect a significant increase in combat power.]
“Absorb?”
[Entities above mid-terminals are granted extensive self-recovery authorization to respond to concentrated attacks from enemies. Therefore, when the necessary materials are secured, they can be used for recovery.]
Listening to its words, I remembered the Screamer that killed the Winter Walker on the ground. It tried to replenish its needed energy by eating the corpse.
‘Is it possible to consume equipment, not just meat or psychic powers?’
PS-111 seemed to be able to consume metal, weapons, equipment, and so on, similar to me. Perhaps its superior, Pyra Eleven, also possesses the same ability.
“Why bring up such important information now?”
[According to the information obtained from the main controller ‘Sea Demon’ and the Middle One, this location is not safe. To protect the main controller, combat functions need to be restored as soon as possible.]
I glanced sharply at PS-111. It didn’t seem like it intentionally omitted important information when I looked at it.
‘Even if it wanted to hide it, it wouldn’t have brought it up now.’
It didn’t seem like it was lying, but I couldn’t just hand over the Blood Rivers. With no idea how powerful it would become after absorbing the powerful unique-grade equipment, and with only eight Blood Rivers in my possession…
‘Three of them would be practically half.’
Since I have to use them in the fight against the Black Gallagon, I need to make a careful decision.
As I pondered what to do, I felt a very faint vibration from the auxiliary organ under my chin.
‘What was that just now?’
A vibration coming from a place quite far from here. It felt different from an earthquake.
With a bad feeling, I flipped over and linked the auxiliary device to the nest.
My senses spread from the surface of the swamp under the nest to the entire underground space. Cold walls of ice, chilly air flowing through the passages, and pits formed by the clash between me and the Ice Horror.
As my senses, monitoring the vast underground space beneath the ice plains, licked it like a tongue, I caught another vibration.
With a thud, the ice and rock piles blocking the passage disappeared in an instant. And there, followed by the flow of psychic powers and the lingering scent of metal weapons.
Realizing what this meant, I sprang to my feet.
‘Enemies!’
Multiple psychic power users had entered this underground space.