Ch.385Sudden Attack (1)

After returning to Gallergorn’s Nest, the first thing I did was move the Mountain Crawler.

Loading the creature with its nearly 100m bulk onto the Gigacracker wasn’t particularly difficult.

Although the Gigacracker is classified as a super weapon, it’s fundamentally a mining vessel. It has a large gate used for loading minerals. I moved the Mountain Crawler by reshaping the corroded ship to fit the gate’s dimensions and then docking it.

I left its management to Coldblood and the mini Screamers. There wasn’t much management needed, really. All they had to do was transfer minerals from the Gigacracker as food when necessary.

After moving the Mountain Crawler, I asked the kids to bring me a few things I needed. This was because we would be heading straight to the Megacorp colony without stopping by Adhigh Orr’s nest.

And PS-111 was the first to bring what I had asked for.

“I’ve brought MPS-05.”

He placed the mini Screamer he was carrying in front of my main body.

[Zzzzzzzz (It’s been a while)]

“Deploy! Deploy!”

MPS-05, a small Screamer with a woman’s face and eight metal legs, raised one of its legs to greet me.

This adorable mini Screamer is a model specialized in communication disruption and connection. It will be useful when infiltrating Megacorp research facilities.

‘It was quite helpful before when infiltrating Beryan02.’

MPS-05 busily moved its legs and crawled up onto my body connected to the ship.

‘Come to think of it, I should transplant the new trait I acquired later.’

The trait I gained from devouring the Metallic Gremlin wasn’t just ‘Warp Organism.’ I was also able to secure ‘Radio Interference,’ which is a material for the ‘Hijacking’ trait that has greatly helped my survival for a long time.

When Radio Interference is combined with the ‘Dexterity’ trait, it becomes the Hijacking trait, which allows control of machines for a short time. Transplanting this to a new mini Screamer would be a great help.

‘Or should I just give it to PS-111?’

Using the ‘Double Helix Monolith’ I received as a reward for reaching Space Monster Type 2, I can transfer up to two traits to him. I’ve already transplanted one trait to him before, so I have one left.

‘I gave him Stealth Movement.’

Among the creatures I received from the slave trader at Beryan02 was a ‘Snow Banshee.’ It’s a quiet predator that leaves almost no traces even when walking on snow. The ‘Stealth Movement’ trait is the result of this characteristic of the Snow Banshee.

Since I already possessed this trait, I transferred it to PS-111 before devouring the Snow Banshee.

When Stealth Movement is applied, defense remains the same while weight is significantly reduced. It’s a suitable trait for someone who engages in a lot of infiltration activities. He was quite satisfied after receiving the trait.

If I transplant Hijacking as well, he’ll become a specialist in infiltration and information warfare.

‘I don’t really need Radio Interference anyway.’

Since obtaining ‘Dark Veil,’ which can nullify detection systems, the importance of Radio Interference has diminished. Hijacking is still useful, but not particularly necessary when PS-111 is around.

‘Well, I’ll think about the details later.’

Shortly after PS-111 came to me with the mini Screamer, the other kids returned to my ship.

「Big One」「Food」「Brought it」

「Baby food for babies to eat!」

「It’s amazing how something that looks like a mushroom can taste like this.」

“That’s right.”

The four who had gone down to Adhigh Orr’s nest dumped what they had brought in front of my main body. Plants that looked like chopped oyster mushrooms piled up like a mountain.

Those are plants that grow around Gallergorn’s Nest. I’ve eaten them once before.

‘They tasted like canned apricots with almond milk.’

It sounds strange from the combination, but it was actually quite edible.

「Big One」「Why」「Young Kin」「Food」「Eat?」

Adhigh Orr tilted his head as if he couldn’t understand. As he said, those plants are mainly eaten by Blue Gallergorn. The plants themselves are very moist and nutritious, making them a staple food for young Gallergorn.

At that moment, No. 26 raised her tentacle beside me as if she knew.

“I know! You’re going to sperm! Sperm!”

“It’s ‘store,’ not ‘sperm.’ Please be careful with your pronunciation.”

[Z Zzzzzzzzz (That’s right. I’m going to store it)]

Fortunately, the encounter with the Metallic Gremlin group turned out well this time. But there’s no guarantee it will always be like this in the future. I can’t afford to have my actions and thoughts impaired by the side effects of ‘Hunger.’

So I asked them to gather food for me to eat whenever I get hungry.

‘Well, I’m not the only one eating it.’

I looked at Sky Mother, who had gone with the kids to find food.

In her Griffon form, she took a bite of the plant fragments.

「This might be good if cooked. It’s not poisonous either.」

“There’s actually a soup made with mushrooms that look similar to this.”

「Really?」

“I made it a few times when I was with Penelope before.”

“I find your sister’s opinion interesting. I would like to try it myself.”

“Yeah? I’ll make it sometime when we get the chance.”

The Griffon and Screamer sisters, who retained much of their human minds, were discussing how to make the food taste better.

“……”

Behind the two chatting amicably, I could see Sechan hastily devouring the food. Having survived on just a few calorie bars until arrival, he had lost a lot of weight.

Just because he’s infected with a parasite doesn’t mean he’s beyond human limitations. He’ll starve to death if he doesn’t eat.

‘He knows a lot about LV-06, where I’m planning to go.’

I need to keep him alive until we arrive.

「Then I’ll bring more baby food for storage.」

「Kin」「Support」「Food」「Move」「Please」

[Z (Okay)]

「I’ll go too.」

“Me too.”

“Have a safe trip.”

After the kids made a few more trips, about a week’s worth of food had accumulated on the ship. It takes at most 5 days to reach LV-06, so this should be enough.

‘Let’s get going then.’

After confirming that everyone had found their places inside the ship, I prepared for FTL travel. As the ship surrounding me was enveloped in blue light, the Metallic Gremlin group that had been hovering nearby began to move in the same way.

‘I originally thought about not taking them.’

To space-faring sentient beings, Metallic Gremlins are like harbingers of death. When we enter the star system with them, everyone will focus only on that silver cloud. Meanwhile, I, disguised as a ship, can safely land on the colony.

A moment later, strong pressure hit the ship’s outer wall covered with organic tissue.

A realm beyond light and space guides me. Together with our new friends, we flew toward a star system far from here.

–

Megacorp Official Designated Colony LV-06.

All Megacorp colonies are operated according to specific objectives.

Some places focus on human resources as their main product, while others prioritize resource extraction on the planet. LV-06, located in the N-51 star system, is no exception.

This colony’s main product is entertainment.

House Zhao of Prime Capital, the owner of LV-06, uses this planet as a filming location for entertainment. Most buildings constructed on the planet and the humans residing in them are essentially sets created for entertainment purposes.

As a result, the fate of the colonists depends on what kind of entertainment the owner wants to create. Dropping bombs on their heads for war footage, or forcing them to actually kill family members for realistic drama, and so on.

LV-06 is a place where all kinds of unethical acts occur to provide pleasure to consumers.

However, this place, which was like a living hell until recently, has become quite quiet lately.

About a week ago, after Lee Zhao, the general manager of LV-06 and director of the Entertainment Resource Improvement Research Institute, returned to Mars, the entire planet has been in a state of unrest.

Not only that, but with the sudden announcement from the Megacorp CEO not long after the end of the civil war, there was also a subtle atmosphere flowing among the colony administrators.

「Next news. There are positive responses within Noble Capital regarding the ‘Temporary Federation Promotion Theory’ proposed by CEO Akira Yujin. If this is realized, it could improve relations with Star Union and Cult Empire…」

“Yes. There are no abnormalities in the research institute. Yes. Yes. I will continue to monitor.”

In an office furnished with luxurious furniture.

A man was talking on a communicator while keeping his gaze fixed on the news being broadcast from the hologram device on his desk.

“What? By construction, do you mean what was buried underground 10 days ago… Ah, no! I’m not talking back! Absolutely not!”

Something seemed to have gone wrong, as the man jumped up and bowed his head to the terminal.

“I will check and submit a report right away! General Manager Lee Zhao. Then.”

Eventually, the man, the chief secretary directly under the general manager, sighed softly as he looked at the terminal after the communication ended.

“Phew, I need to check the research institute’s security, and also verify that useless underground construction… Tsk, looks like I won’t be getting any sleep today either.”

The chief secretary clicked his tongue and turned his attention to the hologram news.

「Star Union has agreed to share information about Outspacer special entities as a gift for the ceasefire, and Megacorp has…」

“Ha. No matter how scary Outspacers are, a ceasefire with those crazy tin bastards… Huh?”

He suddenly fell silent when he saw a red message appear over the news.

“Metallic Gremlin appearance in N-51 star system… What?!”

As soon as he understood the message, the chief secretary’s face turned pale. He hurriedly began typing on the computer next to the hologram device.

“Metallic Gremlins? And on a large scale?”

The chief secretary was about to lose his mind at this completely unexpected situation.

As long as he’s on the planet, he won’t be attacked by Metallic Gremlins. They can’t fly in planetary atmospheres.

But that doesn’t mean he can relax. Communication satellites installed outside the planet and fleets monitoring the star system are not safe. If anything happens to them, it’s all his responsibility.

Shortly after, all defense fleets stationed in the colony were dispatched to eliminate the Metallic Gremlin group. The hologram device displayed a map of the star system, showing the movement of the fleet.

Triangle-shaped marks departing from the colony and space fortress moved to surround an X-shaped mark. They would collide with the X mark in a few minutes.

‘Please…!’

Just as he was praying for minimal damage, an anomaly occurred in the hologram.

The X mark indicating the Metallic Gremlin group suddenly disappeared.

“Huh? What’s going on?”

Wondering if the enemy had disrupted the detection system, he was panicking when a new report came to him.

‘Group departure confirmed? What? Did they really run away?’

Even after receiving the report, he couldn’t believe it and directly contacted the defense fleet via communicator. The answer was the same.

“Ha, haha.”

Only after being convinced that the crisis had passed did he relax and sink into his chair.

‘I think I need a drink.’

There was work that Lee Zhao had ordered, but he didn’t think he could write a proper report in this state of mind.

Just as he was about to leave his office, his personal communicator in his pocket rang. After checking it, he frowned slightly.

“Huh, when did this guy come here?”

The person who sent a message to the chief secretary was a business partner he had known for quite some time.

‘I was just about to have a drink anyway.’

It wouldn’t be bad to be entertained by the other party. After thinking for a moment, he activated his communicator.

“Is that Sechan? Didn’t you say you were busy with recent deals?”

He left his office while talking with the other person who would be somewhere on this planet.