Ch.434Choice and Consequence (2)

After departing from AG-01, I came straight to Gallergorn’s Nest without taking any detours.

But upon arrival, I found the nest in poor condition. Adhigh Orr had absorbed energy much more quickly and in greater quantities than expected.

“Where’s my sister?”

“She has a new ship. She’s looking for a place to put it with Sky Mother.”

“…Nothing bad happened, right?”

Isabelle asked cautiously. She must be worried about her sister PS-111 who wasn’t here.

“She returned safely, so don’t worry.”

“Phew, that’s good.”

Well, my appearance has changed quite a bit, but I haven’t sustained any injuries.

“By the way, I don’t see any Gallergorn around?”

“All the Gallergorn that can hunt have gone out to find food.”

On the way here, I didn’t see any creatures except for the White Gallergorn guarding the valley.

Gallergorn highly value their young and eggs. Even with No. 26 here, leaving such a small number to guard the nest is absolutely not normal.

‘That means the situation is desperate.’

I’m glad I came early. If I had been even a little late, it could have been dangerous.

“Big one, eat this!”

No. 26, who was happy to see me, handed me a mushroom.

[Zzzzz(Thank you)]

‘Looks like you’ve been through a lot.’

Even without checking closely, I could see how noticeably thin it had become. The skin that had boasted an enchanting pink color when I left had turned white, and the movements of its tentacles lacked strength.

“Big one, what’s that?”

[Zzz(This?)]

No. 26 pointed with its tentacle at the Arcane Orca I was holding. I answered while chewing on the mushroom with its sweet juice.

[Zzzzzz zz(Adhigh’s food)]

“Food?”

[Zz zzz zzzz zzzzz zzzzzzzzz(Yes. This should make things better)]

“Really? Really?”

This is food containing the energy of a star. It should be enough to wake Adhigh Orr.

“I’m going to feed it right now. Check if there are any problems during energy absorption.”

“Got it.”

Thanks to her perk, Isabelle can read information about others. With her here, we can handle any unexpected situations.

Just then, No. 26 stretched out its tentacles like hands and waved them.

“Are you going to feed it? I want to see too!”

[Zzzzzz zzzz zzzzz zzzzzzzz(Stay here, it might be dangerous)]

“I want to see the little one eat!”

It throws a tantrum, jumping up and down with its large body. The walls and ceiling vibrate, and the Blue Gallergorn in its arms tilt their heads as if wondering what’s happening.

‘Do you want to see it that badly?’

I’ve never seen No. 26 act like this before.

It looks like it will follow me even if I tell it not to come. In that case, it might be better to take it along.

[Zzzzzz zzzz zzzz(Then let’s go together)]

“Okay!”

I took No. 26 and Isabelle to where Adhigh Orr was.

The leader’s throne, which I hadn’t seen in a long time, was almost unchanged. The gems piled up in the cavity, the giant ruby crystal standing tall in the middle, the increasing weakness as you get closer to the crystal—everything was just as I had seen and felt before.

I approached the crystal and placed the Arcane Orca’s body down.

The moment it touched the body, the red light of the crystal became more vivid. The crystal, now blood-red as if bleeding, began to devour the Arcane Orca.

The golden bones crumpled and crumbled in real time. The energy contained within flowed directly to the being sleeping inside the crystal. At the same time, the red current generated by the massive energy absorption stirred the inside of the cavity.

At this rate, it seemed like it would take my energy too, so I quickly retreated to the edge.

The Arcane Orca’s bones disappeared quickly. Even the gems spread across the floor were swept up by the current and crumbled.

Something doesn’t seem right. Isabelle, who was staring at the crystal, spoke up.

“There’s a problem.”

“What? Is the Arcane Orca not enough?”

“No, the opposite. There’s too much energy.”

“Too much? Isn’t that a good thing?”

She shook her head at my question.

“It’s evidence that it can’t gauge how much energy it needs. If we leave it like this, it will just keep absorbing without waking up.”

She’s right. The crystal, having devoured the entire Arcane Orca, is now coveting my energy and that of the entire nest.

“What should we do to stop it?”

“…It’s already gathered all the energy it needs for growth. If we destroy the crystal, Adhigh will wake up too.”

I’ve heard that sometimes animal eggs don’t hatch even after their time has come. In such cases, stimulating the shell can induce hatching.

The current situation seems similar. If we break the crystal, Adhigh sleeping inside should regain consciousness.

I took a step toward the crystal in the red storm. As my wing-arm touched the blood-colored cloud, energy was rapidly drained.

The “dragon’s heart,” my second heart in my chest, hurriedly filled in the energy. But the energy was being consumed faster than it could be replenished.

Just as I staggered unconsciously from the intense weakness, the current dispersed for a moment. The cloud that had been attacking me gathered behind me instead.

“Big one! Hang in there!”

No. 26, now in combat mode, was controlling the current with thousands of tentacles.

Of course, even it couldn’t stop the energy-absorbing storm. I could see its tentacles rapidly diminishing. It could hold out for maybe ten seconds at most.

But thanks to it, I was able to safely approach the crystal.

‘I need to break it in one blow.’

If we drag this out even a little, we’re all finished.

I swung my right tail with all my might. The pincer at the end of my tail collided with the hard crystal.

“Pain reduction activated!”

My tail evaporated upon contact. At the same time, a small crack appeared on the previously flawless crystal surface.

The crack spread across the entire surface like a spider building its web. When the crack spread across the entire surface, the red prison finally collapsed. Along with it, the massive energy condensed in the crystal and current dispersed.

Most of it seeped into the ceiling, walls, and floor, but some flowed to an unexpected being—No. 26, who had been controlling the current.

Looking back, I saw that its body, which had been bleached white, had returned to pink. Life returned to its withered skin, and its injured tentacles were restored.

“I’m full.”

‘Did it get back the energy that was taken from it?’

No. 26, now swollen with energy like a steamed bun, deactivated combat mode and collapsed on the spot. It looked as comfortable as if it had eaten a delicious meal.

‘What about Adhigh?’

Looking forward again, I saw an unfamiliar being lying where the crystal had been.

Length somewhere between 5m and 7m? It’s hard to gauge the exact length because it’s covering its body with four large wings.

The surface of the wings was red like the crystal, and their faint glow resembled the Rosette Nebula. Inside the beautiful wings, a long, thin body was coiled.

Scales darker red than the wings, four thin but sturdy legs, and a long, slender neck with a full, plump tail.

The being, looking like an appropriate combination of Eastern dragon and Western dragon, slowly raised its head.

The moment I saw the two shining eyes beneath six brilliant horns, I realized who the being before me was.

[Zzzzzz(Adhigh?)]

“Big one?”

The Red Gallergorn—no, Adhigh Orr—responded to my wavelength. Its head came closer.

“Size” “Small” “Body” “Are you hurt?”

[Zz(Huh?)]

Perhaps due to its narrow eyes, the purple eyes that now looked more mature than before scrutinized my body. It’s worried about me.

‘Why is it acting like this?’

While my body has changed into a “creepy mimic,” it’s not something to worry about this much.

‘Does it not remember entering the crystal?’

If so, this reaction makes sense. It would seem like I’ve completely changed in just a few hours.

[Zzzzzz zzzzzz zzzzzz(Don’t worry. We won.)]

“Really?”

[Zz zzzz zzzzzz(Yes. Are you okay?)]

“Me?” “Fine” “?”

Only then did Adhigh realize its own transformation and hurriedly checked itself.

“?” “?”

Its amethyst-like eyes traveled from its neck along its smooth body to the tip of its tail.

“Big one!” “I’ve” “grown” “bigger!”

[Zzzz zzzz zzzzzzzz zzzzzzzzz(Are you feeling any pain or discomfort?)]

“No” “problem!” “Look!”

It stood up abruptly and spun around in place. As it did, the tips of its wings and tail touched under my chin.

The sensation was hard to believe was covered in scales. I was surprised by how soft and pleasant it felt, like touching silk.

Then it gently stroked my wing-arm with its long tail.

“Tail” “scales” “more” “beautiful”

[Zzzzzz(Indeed)]

It’s true.

Even as a White Gallergorn, it was beautiful enough, but back then it had a more cute feeling.

But now there’s a strange charm where delicacy and maturity coexist. Perhaps it’s due to the dragon-like slender body and the captivating red scales.

‘It looks quite different from what I saw in the game.’

In the game, Red Gallergorn were much larger and looked fiercer and more majestic. No wonder the Red Gallergorn’s nickname was the Red Tyrant.

In contrast, Adhigh’s image was far from tyrannical. Perhaps this difference exists because it’s female.

“Big one” “I” “now”

Just as it was about to say something, pink tentacles appeared from behind me and wrapped around it.

“?”

No. 26 grabbed Adhigh and pulled it sharply toward itself.

“Little one! Are you okay?”

“Suffocating”

“Little one, are you okay?”

“Tight” “doing this” “on purpose?”

“I’m glad you’re okay!”

It hugged the struggling Adhigh tightly and wouldn’t let go.

“Looks like it was really worried.”

“…Is that really worry?”

“They’ve always been close. No. 26 taught it a lot. It’s probably spent the most time with it after me.”

“……”

Isabelle seemed to understand my explanation and fell silent.

Anyway, this completes Adhigh’s growth.

‘There’s still a lot to do, but…’

It should be fine to postpone it for a while.

With that thought, I watched No. 26 and Adhigh playing around.