Ch.86Shadow (3)

‘No. 26?’

The identity of the pink jellyfish that had broken through the asphalt on the road was No. 26.

‘You’ve changed so much since I last saw you?’

Its appearance had changed so dramatically that I almost couldn’t recognize it.

First, those colorful hues flowing softly on its pink body weren’t there before.

Energy glowing in all sorts of colors constantly shifted and pulsated on its body, looking almost like countless eyes monitoring the surroundings.

This was an effect caused by “Deep Sea Terror,” one of the Sea Demon’s unique characteristics.

Because of this trait, people without mental resistance who approach a Sea Demon would go insane or fall into a panic state.

‘Plus, it can weaken supportive psychic power techniques used by nearby enemies.’

According to the lore, Sea Demons possess extremely powerful psychic energy. That’s why psychic energy occasionally leaks out of their bodies.

This leaked psychic energy has negative effects on nearby creatures, and this phenomenon is what’s manifested in the Deep Sea Terror trait.

That’s why when psychic power users try to use remote support techniques like soul link or spirit tuning near a Sea Demon, they don’t activate properly.

‘Not to mention that terrifying visual is also famous.’

Imagine being watched by hundreds of eyes from a monster over 20 meters long in the deep sea.

It’s so terrifying that overseas communities even use images of Sea Demons with activated Deep Sea Terror as disturbing content.

Of course, the energy surrounding No. 26’s body didn’t look as menacing as the original.

It was probably deliberately toning it down in front of me.

‘Come to think of it, its physical form has changed a lot too.’

The Deep Sea Terror trait was so impressive that I hadn’t noticed how much the rest had changed.

Below its body, 20 long, thin tentacle clusters extended outward, and between the tentacles, thick fins that functioned as legs were sparsely visible.

The tentacle shape was similar to the saw-edged tentacles I had before.

Though thinner than mine had been, the sharp saw-like edges densely covering the entire tentacles were threatening enough.

The creature, now fully revealed on the road, sent me a wave.

“Big one!”

No. 26 extended its tentacles to stroke me affectionately.

Thanks to the Hunt’s Emblem effect, I had grown larger, but No. 26 was no slouch either.

It looked smaller because its fins were bent, but if fully extended, it would be nearly 7 to 8 meters tall, with tentacles over 10 meters long.

[Zzzzz (How?)]

“I did what the big one taught me! I ate a lot and grew hard!”

That’s strange. I’m pretty sure I told it to stay hidden.

Maybe it’s because it evolved. No. 26 seems much more intelligent than I expected.

“It’s not just me who grew. The little one grew a lot too.”

[Zzz (What?)]

A green object shot up into the air from the hole behind No. 26.

It soared through the air of the space city, circling before landing gracefully in front of me.

“Adult” “Happy”

Adhigh Orr bowed its head to me in greeting.

‘It grew into a Green Gallergorn?’

No. 26 had changed a lot, but Adhigh’s appearance was truly transformed.

Its scales had mostly turned green with occasional blue scales mixed in. Its body length had grown well beyond 1 meter, and its wings were much larger than before.

Not just its body and color, but its overall form had changed significantly too.

Previously, it had resembled a skink with its chubby body and stubby legs, but now it had transformed into something completely different.

Its four long, taut legs reminded me of a deer, and its slim, flexible body exuded a certain allure.

In contrast to its slender body, its tail was relatively thick and plump.

As for its head, it still had tentacle clusters instead of a mouth like before, but its head shape had become more elongated, and the horns on its head had increased to four.

‘It’s much smaller than a Green Gallergorn, but it looks similar.’

Plus, seeing how its tail had thickened as it grew, Adhigh was definitely female.

Gallergorn exhibits sexual dimorphism according to the lore, so males and females look different.

Males have thin tails but thick, elaborate horns, while females have thick tails but simpler horns.

‘Males are considered handsome if they have elaborate head horns, while females are considered beautiful if they have plump tails.’

Judging by that firm tail, Adhigh must be considered quite attractive among Gallergorn.

‘What did it eat to grow so quickly?’

I had some idea.

There were many corpses in the sewers—knights and soldiers I had killed, as well as employees who died when the signal chips activated.

And there would be plenty who died falling into the sewers when the shopping district’s foundation collapsed.

‘Still, it ate all of that?’

And without getting caught by soldiers patrolling the sewers.

‘That’s incredible growth.’

If my guess is correct, not only has it grown physically, but its combat abilities must have improved dramatically as well.

No. 26 puffed up proudly, as if asking for praise.

Despite the urgent situation, I couldn’t help but stroke its body in praise.

It trembled with pleasure, and the energy flowing on its surface changed to fluffy colors reflecting its emotions.

It looked so disheveled that it was hard to imagine it as Deep Sea Terror.

“I” “Grew” “I” “Cool” “Adult” “Praise”

Adhigh also pushed its body toward me for praise, so I stroked it too.

Watching Adhigh wag its tail gently, I thought:

‘It learned my hunting methods.’

No. 26 probably led the hunting, since Adhigh hadn’t spent much time with me.

No. 26 had always been a quick learner.

It must have learned my hunting style—digging traps, hiding, and ambushing.

‘Anyway, I’ll think about that later.’

Code Black will be here soon.

In other situations, I would have hidden them somewhere and fought alone, but things are different now.

‘I’ll have to fight with them.’

There are two enemies. Since it would be difficult for me to handle alone, I need to actively use No. 26 and Adhigh.

[Zzzz zzzzzz zzzz (I need to talk to you for a moment.)]

“Yes?”

“?”

[Zzzzzz zzzz zz zzzzzz (I need to fight a powerful enemy. Help me.)]

When I said that, their gazes shifted to my severed arm and the wound on my side.

No. 26 doesn’t have eyes originally, but I could easily tell where it was focusing by how the psychic power flowing on its surface reflected its emotions.

“Someone hurt the big one? Unforgivable!”

“Adult” “Attackers” “Enemy”

No. 26 became furious and slammed its tentacles on the ground. The asphalt caved in and the surrounding road cracked with a loud noise.

Adhigh also expressed its displeasure by kicking the ground hard with its hind legs.

‘Fighting won’t be a problem.’

No. 26 seems to have grown stronger, not just bigger.

Sea Demons are considered powerful life forms, treated as mini-bosses. In terms of danger level, they’re half a step above Black Gallergorn.

‘Though it still seems to be growing.’

It’s enough to support me.

Adhigh still has some blue scales left, but most of its body is covered with green scales, so it’s fair to assume it has the power of a Green Gallergorn.

‘If my guess is right, it can intercept enemies with the power of a Green Gallergorn.’

Green Gallergorn is only at the Morphlet stage, so it can’t show overwhelming destructive power like White Gallergorn or Black Gallergorn.

Instead, its combat abilities have developed in a different direction.

‘Plus, with No. 26 able to use Deep Sea Terror, if I utilize these two well…’

Green Gallergorn, Sea Demon, and AMorph.

All three of us here are still immature and not fully grown.

But if we coordinate well, we can hunt even strong enemies with ease.

I calmed them down and explained the plan.

–

Code Black was an orphan.

In Megacorp, orphans are bottom-dwellers who cannot be saved, the very embodiment of society’s dark side.

Most become employees before they grow up, and if they’re lucky, they enter Space Dog.

In that sense, Code Black was a unique case.

She entered House Yugin as an employee and became material for a shadow.

Like countless test subjects before her, she was destined to fade away.

But she survived.

She had an aptitude for psychic power far superior to ordinary humans.

Thanks to that, she became the first successful subject of House Yugin’s Cult gene implantation experiment.

Prototypes are usually inferior to mass-produced versions, but she was an existence beyond normal parameters.

Even among the hybrids of Cult and humans created afterward, her power was unparalleled.

When her modification into a shadow was complete, Head of House Akira Yujin bestowed a name upon her.

Code Black.

The title given to the most superior being among shadows.

“Code Red. Where did the target go?”

“Residential area, 32nd street. Be cautious.”

“Cautious? Why?”

“Psychic power flow is unstable. Unknown entity has infiltrated the psychic control web.”

“The target can use Psychic Breath. Is that its doing?”

“Unknown. The unknown entity has built an independent psychic control web.”

“I understand for now. Keep monitoring.”

“Understood.”

After ending her mental conversation with Code Red, she headed toward the target’s location.

As in the conversation just now, most shadows are machine-like beings with faint self-awareness. Their minds are completely broken after horrific experiments.

Among the shadows, only Code Black and the now-dead Code White could speak freely.

‘Now I’m the only one.’

Since Code White died miserably during a mission, she was the only greatest being among shadows.

That fact excited her.

In truth, though she didn’t know it herself, all shadows have mentally unstable elements.

Code Black was obsessed with the idea that she was the most superior and perfect being.

The reason she talked a lot during fights wasn’t for conversation but to show off her specialness.

‘If I can just get that monster’s genes…!’

If she succeeded in implanting its genes, she would become an even higher-dimensional being than she was now.

As she was feeling elated for the first time in a while, she spotted the target.

The target had dug a large hole in the middle of the road.

Despite having dug the hole, it wasn’t running away but was lying prone with all four of its large arms pressed against the ground.

“Aren’t you going to run away?”

“Grr, I·don’t·need·to.”

“…You can speak?”

Code Black was surprised to see the creature speak.

It sounded strange, like a woman’s voice recorded and then distorted by a machine, but the creature was clearly using human language.

‘Impressive.’

She had thought the monster was intelligent enough to escape surveillance and get outside, but she hadn’t expected it to be intelligent enough to communicate with humans.

Her mission was to capture it.

A monster with a brain capable of conversation would surely understand its situation.

She opened her mouth.

“If you’re smart, you’ll understand. I suggest you surrender.”

“Well, grrrr, I·wonder·about·that.”

Sensing the leisure in the creature’s words, she frowned.

‘How impudent for a beast.’

“I’ll take you back with just your head and torso.”

She drew two psychic whips from her hands.

Just as she was about to swing them, the ground where she stood split open and tentacles shot out.

‘An ambush!’

So that’s why it had its hands on the ground.

She quickly lifted herself into the air.

The tentacles, having failed their ambush, retreated back into the ground.

In mid-air, she swung her whip widely.

Her target wasn’t the tentacles but the monster’s main body.

Since the tentacles were connected to its arms, they were now neutralized. As she expected, the creature couldn’t move.

Just as the purple snake rushed to bite into the creature’s body, the monster turned its head to block the whip’s path.

The whip, made of pure psychic power, collided with the creature’s thick head carapace, creating intense sparks.

‘As expected.’

She realized that the head and shield-shaped carapace on the wrists were the hardest parts of the monster’s body.

‘I need to target elsewhere.’

As she landed, the snake in her left hand flicked its tongue and rushed toward the monster.

But the creature, having already retracted its tentacles, retreated far back.

Her whip only scratched the asphalt of the road.

Not stopping there, as it retreated, the monster threw a large fragment of the road at her.

‘Reflection!’

An invisible barrier formed in front of her, deflecting all the fragments.

But it was too early to relax. Spines flew at her with a slight time delay after the fragments.

It was an attack aimed at the brief moment when Reflection was deactivated after blocking one physical attack.

“Tsk.”

Her whip quickly swung around to sweep away the rain of spines.

‘It targeted the gap when Reflection was deactivated?’

Reflection can perfectly defend against all types of physical attacks. Even rapid-fire attacks like machine guns are all blocked when Reflection is activated.

However, since she needs to concentrate while Reflection is active, she can’t keep it up all the time.

So when moving or performing other actions, she has to deactivate it, and there’s a very short cooldown before she can use it again after deactivation.

‘The enemy is clearly familiar with fighting Cult.’

Whatever it is, this monster precisely targeted Reflection’s weakness.

‘I need to change tactics.’

She had originally planned to finish it with psychic whips, but that seemed unlikely now.

‘I’ll finish this with Psychic Breath barrage.’

Code Black raised both hands, pointing them forward with palms wide open.

Black spheres appeared in front of her hands, followed by long black heat rays that cut through the air.

The monster, seemingly judging it couldn’t block this, ducked low.

The black heat rays not only burned the crown-like head carapace and the arm on its back but also destroyed buildings far away.

The creature crawled rapidly with three arms and legs pressed to the ground, avoiding the heat rays.

The rays burned the road and houses, sending debris flying into the air.

The crawling monster jumped through the air, stepping on the debris. It even counterattacked by shooting spines mid-jump.

She cast Reflection simultaneously while firing Psychic Breath to block the spines.

“Enough! Playtime is over!”

While shooting Psychic Breath with her right hand, she drew a psychic whip with her left.

The psychic whip flew out and wrapped around the creature’s leg in mid-air, and then the black heat ray burned its tail.

“Grrrrrr!”

The monster howled in extreme pain.

One of its main weapons, the tail, was now neutralized.

With a smile on her lips, Code Black yanked it down and slammed it to the ground.

As she was about to finish it with a heat ray, the monster refused to give up, jumped to its feet, and rushed at her.

It tried to slash her with its elongated arm, but she had already cast Reflection.

The monster’s arm was pushed back hard. She swung her psychic whip at the off-balance creature, wrapping it around its neck.

“It’s over. I suggest you surren—ugh!”

As she was speaking, the monster opened its mouth wide. High-temperature flames shot out from its mouth and poured onto her face.

“Aaargh!”

Thanks to Reflection, she wasn’t injured, but it couldn’t block the high temperature of the flames.

The extreme heat that hit her face caused severe burns to her eyes.

“You damn monster…!”

Even in her disrupted concentration, she fired Psychic Breath. The heat ray blew off one of the monster’s arms, but it was still going strong.

The arm on the monster’s back with sickle-like claws.

This menacing biological weapon struck her shoulder.

‘I might lose at this rate!’

She quickly sent a signal to Code Red.

Purple light erupted from her battered body, and her body rapidly disintegrated.

The arm the monster swung passed through her body and stuck into the ground.

Having become ethereal, she was instantly reassembled behind the monster, clean and without a single injury.

As soon as her body materialized, she struck the monster with her psychic whip.

The monster couldn’t avoid her attack and was helplessly knocked down.

“You’re the first opponent to inflict such damage on me.”

Though her tone was calm, she had half lost her reason. She had nearly lost her life fighting a being weaker than herself.

“I’m sure Akira will understand if I just extract the brain and bring it back.”

As she extended both hands, black spheres appeared again.

Just as she was about to finish off the monster, which was staggering to its feet—

“Cough?!”

She coughed up blood.

Only then did she feel extreme pain in her abdomen and involuntarily fell to her knees.

“W-what is this?”

She touched her abdomen. The outside seemed fine, but she could feel hard rebar fragments inside.

“Etherealization, gruk, has·a·weakness.”

A voice came from above her bewildered head.

It was the monster, which had somehow approached her, muttering.

“H-how…?”

“Grr, if·there’s·an·obstacle·in·the·way, grrrr, it·doesn’t·work.”

When re-materializing from an ethereal state, there must not be any object in that space. If there is, as she experienced, the object becomes embedded in the body.

Of course, she was well aware of the weakness of the ethereal tuning technique.

What she couldn’t understand was how the rebar fragments had suddenly appeared, evading both her and Code Red’s perception.

‘No. I, I need to etherealize first…’

She quickly sent a signal to Code Red.

Asking to etherealize again and create distance from the monster.

But the response she received was beyond her expectation.

“Under attack by unknown enemy. Currently need to focus on defense. Etherealization impossible.”

‘What?’

An unknown enemy?

Suddenly, her gaze turned to the hole that had been dug in the road earlier.

Several purple-glowing tentacles extended from the hole, swaying gently.

‘Psychic power!’

Come to think of it, Code Red had said that.

Red had said someone had infiltrated the surveillance network made with psychic power. That they couldn’t determine the exact status because an independent psychic control web had been built.

At the time, she thought the target was using psychic power to avoid surveillance, but that wasn’t it.

‘There’s more than one enemy!’

As if answering her thoughts, the monster spoke.

“We·are·not·one.”

The monster’s arm slashed her neck.