Ch.456Apex (2)

The black space reminiscent of tar, with a blue-tinged sphere floating above it.

The planet shone beautifully like carved lapis lazuli. Its entire surface was covered by ocean.

The humans of Megacorp called this celestial body NOX-02.

Near NOX-02, which slowly orbited its star, a blue flame blossomed. With a flash of light, an impressively streamlined battleship appeared.

“Successful FTL navigation. Initiating engine stabilization procedures.”

“No deviation from designated jump coordinates.”

The ship’s bridge.

The floor was covered with white marble, while display panels were installed on the front wall and ceiling. The panels connected to external cameras reflected the environment outside the hull in real-time. This made the bridge appear as if it were floating in the middle of space.

The crew’s attire was as extraordinary as the mythical atmosphere of the bridge.

Everyone on the bridge wore heavy power armor that resembled something from a movie.

In Megacorp, only one group wore such attire while on duty—the Silver Lion Knights of House Egerton of Prime Capital.

“We’ve arrived, Sir Jacob.”

“Hmm.”

Jacob, wearing elaborately designed power armor, sat in the captain’s seat, gazing at the blue planet displayed on the panel.

“Are preparations for planetary entry complete?”

“Both knights and researchers are fully prepared.”

“Good. Vice Commander, I leave the command to you.”

“Yes, sir.”

After transferring command to the Vice Commander, Jacob left the bridge.

When he arrived at the hangar, about 200 heavily armed knights and researchers in power armor were waiting for him.

“Let’s go.”

Jacob led the waiting personnel onto the prepared multipurpose transport ship.

Soon, the transport ship departed from the battleship and rapidly approached the planet.

Shortly after entering the atmosphere, Jacob’s vessel began to shake. Simultaneously, a rumbling noise could be heard from outside the hull.

‘A storm?’

The planet he was visiting had its surface covered with water. Naturally, weather activity would be vigorous. Jacob didn’t think much of it.

Shortly after, the transport ship arrived at NOX-02’s floating base, Aqua State.

As they disembarked, fierce winds and rain greeted them. The city administrators who had been waiting at the port in the downpour rushed over.

“Ahem, welcome! Welcome to Aqua State!”

“Welcome!”

Perhaps due to the loud wind, the administrators shouted their greetings.

“Hmm. I apologize for visiting in such weather.”

“Not at all! This is an anomalous phenomenon that appeared suddenly—we’re investigating it ourselves! Please don’t worry about it!”

“I see.”

While conversing with the city’s chief administrator, Jacob looked around. Someone who should have been there was missing.

“Where is Joel?”

“Joel? Oh, do you mean the rescue ship’s captain?”

“Yes. I told him to be here before our arrival.”

One of the administrators raised his hand.

“I saw him at the maintenance facility about an hour and a half ago!”

“Maintenance facility?”

“Yes! He said he had business on the rescue ship that was undergoing maintenance and boarded it! I don’t know where he went after that!”

Jacob frowned.

‘What’s going on?’

Before arriving here, he had sent a message to Joel.

He had told him to prepare everything so they could move to the deep-sea research facility with the parasite samples as soon as the knights arrived.

And Joel had replied that all preparations were complete.

‘Why would he lie… unless?’

Suddenly, an ominous thought crossed his mind.

‘What if something happened to the parasites Joel brought?’

It would be fortunate if there were only problems. There was also the possibility that the parasites had died during handling.

The value of a new species of Outspacer parasite needs no explanation. Joel must have known this fact and lied because of it.

Jacob immediately called for his subordinate.

“Contact Joel right now.”

“Yes, sir—”

The subordinate who was answering suddenly froze mid-sentence.

He wasn’t the only one. The knights and researchers behind him, and even the city administrators, were all frozen with their mouths open.

Their gazes were directed precisely behind Jacob.

‘What is it?’

Following their gaze, he turned around and saw something in the distance beyond the city.

Between the gray cloud-filled sky and the dark blue sea, there stood a towering mountain range.

‘Mountains?’

NOX-02 had its entire surface covered by ocean. There couldn’t possibly be mountains on a planet with no land.

Much less mountains that were visibly growing in real-time.

Unless it was a wave so high it could be mistaken for a mountain range.

“Holy—!”

“R-run awaaaaay!”

“Kyaaaah!”

“Everyone evacuate to the transport ship!”

Right after Jacob shouted, a tidal wave of overwhelming height engulfed Aqua State.

–

“We’ve lost the signal from the transport ship!”

“What?”

The Vice Commander was startled by the sudden report.

“Is it a communication network issue?”

“No! We checked with the detection system, but still can’t pick up any signal!”

“That’s impossible! Are you saying the ship just vanished entirely?!”

Unless a war had broken out on the planet, it was impossible for a transport ship to disappear so suddenly.

The confused Vice Commander hurriedly tried to contact Jacob, but received no response. The same happened when he tried to contact the other knights who had gone down with the commander.

“What about Aqua State?”

“…No signal there either.”

What was even stranger was that they couldn’t contact the base where the exploration ship had landed.

‘What on earth is happening down there?’

The Vice Commander glared at the panel at the front of the bridge.

It showed a planet covered with white clouds. A massive typhoon was sweeping across the entire planet.

When they had arrived, there hadn’t been a single cloud there. Less than an hour had passed, and now it looked like this.

“…This doesn’t look good. Enter the planet’s atmosphere immediately.”

“Yes, sir!”

At the highest commanding officer’s order, his subordinates moved in unison. The waiting battleship began accelerating toward the planet.

“Any detection response?”

“Still no response… Wait! Unidentified signal detected!”

“What?”

Just as they entered the atmosphere, the detection system picked up a signal.

“Is it the Commander?”

“I’ll check!”

The subordinate tracked the suddenly appearing signal. Shortly after, the results analyzed by the battleship’s detection system were displayed as a hologram.

“…Hmm? Are these results certain?”

“Yes. They’re confirmed.”

The Vice Commander frowned at the hologram that appeared in the center of the bridge. The newly observed signal was very strange.

‘An energy signal?’

Such signals typically appeared when FTL engines were activated or when a battleship’s plasma main cannon fired a beam. Neither should be present here.

What was even stranger was that the signal was moving. And it was moving at a speed that the detection system could barely track.

Beep

“T-the signal is approaching us!”

“Damn it! Whatever it is, everyone prepare for battle!”

Everyone on the bridge activated their power armor and put on their helmets.

The battleship they commanded also stopped moving and entered combat mode. The main cannon mounted on the front and hundreds of auxiliary guns all prepared to fire.

“Fire immediately when the signal enters effective firing range.”

Everyone’s attention on the bridge was focused on the hologram.

Beep

The unidentified signal was rapidly closing the distance. The waiting gun batteries began firing.

Heat rays cut across the edge of the planet’s atmosphere. The rays and the target would collide any moment now.

“Target hit successful!”

“The signal?”

“I’ll check.”

It had been hit directly by the battleship’s main cannon. Any normal ship would have been split in two. No one on the bridge thought that entity would remain intact.

Beep

“Huh?”

But the small sound from the detection system didn’t stop.

“Signal still detected! It continues to approach the battleship!”

“Impossible! Continue firing!”

They were already doing so without the Vice Commander’s order. The battleship’s guns were pouring out a barrage of fire, but none of it could stop the unidentified signal.

Beep

The signal had come close enough to be visually identified.

The Vice Commander’s gaze unconsciously turned to the panel at the front of the bridge.

The panel linked to the external cameras showed a sky full of dark clouds. Between the ashen clouds where lightning occasionally flashed, an alien luminous body could be seen.

It looked like a small star in the night sky. A comet moving while scattering bright red light.

The plasma heat ray fired from the battleship’s main cannon collided with the comet. A strong light obscured the camera’s view with the explosion.

Beep beep

In the midst of the burning black flames, a red light flashed. The entity surrounded by fire and light was still there.

As the smoke cleared, the entity beyond the light revealed itself.

Upon facing the being with four wings spread wide like a comet’s tail, the Vice Commander recalled a creature he had seen in a research lab in the past.

“Gal-Gallergorn?”

In truth, that being had almost nothing in common with the creature he had encountered. The color of the scales, the number of wings—everything was different. The only identical element was the amethyst-like purple eyes.

Nevertheless, he didn’t know why he thought of Gallergorn.

“Energy reaction from the signal is rapidly increasing! D-dangerous!”

But that no longer mattered.

The last thing the Vice Commander saw was a beam of light emanating from the red Gallergorn, engulfing the battleship and his subordinates.