Ch.90Crossroads (2)

Three patrol ships were pursuing Adhigh Orr.

Those spacecraft, resembling 40m rectangular boxes, were the Aegis model—small patrol ships utilized by Megacorps.

Of course, despite being classified as “small,” each was equipped with four plasma turrets, making them impossible to confront recklessly.

‘What should I do?’

The surroundings offered little cover, filled only with ruins that Black had destroyed with his psychic breath beam.

‘If we’re going to escape, we should probably use the underground passage the kids came through.’

But fleeing underground isn’t necessarily a good choice in this situation.

Adhigh is currently being pursued. If we carelessly try to hide and accidentally get hit by plasma shells, it would be disastrous.

‘Besides, Adhigh is injured.’

I can smell a mixture of human blood and his own blood on his body.

If I don’t plan to abandon him here, I can’t put any more burden on him.

‘To buy time, I need some kind of method… ah.’

Come to think of it, when I lost consciousness, No. 26 threw Black and Cult corpses at me as food.

‘After eating Black, a text box definitely appeared.’

I was out of my mind, so I only knew something was flickering before my eyes but didn’t examine it specifically.

I quickly checked the text box.

「Predation Effect Activated! Successfully acquired ‘Dragon’s Majesty’ genetic essence.」

「Stole ‘Dragon’s Majesty’ from Code Black’s biological characteristics.」

「Would you like to apply ‘Dragon’s Majesty’?」

「Predation Effect Activated! Successfully acquired ‘Pain Spear’ genetic essence.」

「Stole ‘Pain Spear’ from Code Black’s biological characteristics.」

「Would you like to apply ‘Pain Spear’?」

「Predation Effect Activated! Successfully acquired ‘Resistance’ genetic essence.」

「Stole ‘Resistance’ from Code Black’s biological characteristics.」

「Would you like to apply ‘Resistance’?」

All powerful characteristics. Moreover, one of them is exactly what I need right now.

As I accepted, new text boxes appeared and mutations began in my body.

「’Dragon’s Majesty’ characteristic has been applied.」

「Can be fused with existing ‘Clairvoyance’ characteristic.」

「’Dragon’s Majesty’ and ‘Clairvoyance’ characteristics have fused. Evolved into ‘Watcher of Terror’ characteristic!」

「Watcher of Terror: Injects indescribable terror into one specific sentient being. There’s a chance the target may go insane.

*P.S.: No need to mention what the oldest human emotion is.」

「’Pain Spear’ characteristic has been applied.」

「Can be fused with existing ‘Breath of Fire’ characteristic.」

「’Pain Spear’ and ‘Breath of Fire’ characteristics have fused. Evolved into ‘Decay Fungal Organ’ characteristic!」

「Decay Fungal Organ: Spews fungal spores that worsen and contaminate the enemy’s natural healing abilities.

*P.S.: Decay is just another form of circulation.」

This mutation primarily occurred around my head and its surroundings.

Starting from around my eyes, an itching sensation spread throughout my head.

The surface of my exoskeleton underwent changes, becoming concave or protruding in places. My horns curved toward the front of my head, and spiral patterns formed on their surface.

Previously, when I acquired the psychic enhancement type, geometric patterns were engraved on the carapace covering my head. Now, eye-like patterns were added on top of those.

True to the name ‘Watcher of Terror,’ it gave the impression that countless eyes inside my head were monitoring the outside.

The changes weren’t limited to my head.

The ignition organ in my throat disappeared, replaced by an organ that produces and fires microorganisms. Thanks to this new organ, my entire neck became much thicker than before.

The ‘Resistance’ characteristic changed my internal body structure, so it wasn’t particularly visible from the outside.

‘Good.’

After completing my evolution with the new characteristics, I called No. 26.

[Zzzzzz zz zzz zzz(We need to catch the people chasing Adhigh)]

「People? You mean the prey with four appendages?」

[Zz(Yes)]

Since it wasn’t exactly wrong, I didn’t correct him.

[Zzzz zz zzzzzz zz(People are riding inside those metal boxes)]

「Yes. I can sense them.」

[Zz zzzz zzzz(I can’t catch them all by myself)]

「Yes, yes. I’ll help you!」

Fortunately, he’s quick to understand.

One patrol ship might be manageable, but facing three would be difficult for me alone. No. 26’s help is essential here.

[Zzzz zz zz(You have power)]

「Power?」

[Zzzz zzzzzz z(Power to drive people insane)]

If I can properly utilize the ‘Deep Sea Terror’ characteristic, I could neutralize the crew aboard the patrol ships.

‘In the game, Sea Demons would often focus Deep Sea Terror on tanks or supporters.’

The Deep Sea Terror debuff effect is so powerful that even with thorough immunity, it can’t be blocked.

‘This is reality, so it might be different…’

Also, the distance between here and the patrol ships is considerable, so even if No. 26 uses Deep Sea Terror, I’m not sure if it will reach the ships.

‘No. I shouldn’t think negatively.’

No. 26 may be small, but he’s still a Sea Demon.

‘He can do it.’

Plus, he’s intelligent. If he figures out the technique, he’ll definitely succeed.

[Zzzz zzzz zz(Focus your power)]

「Okay. Nnnngh!」

While No. 26 trembled in concentration, I examined Adhigh.

He was circling the airspace around here with the patrol ships in pursuit. He kept dodging their fire with divine-like flying, but his speed was gradually decreasing.

‘He won’t last much longer like that.’

[Zzzz zzzz zz zzzz zzzzz(Focus clearly on your target and think about capturing it)]

「Capture it?」

[Zz zzzz zz(Yes. Think that you’ll never let it go)]

「I’ll try.」

I’m not sure if what I said is correct.

I simply explained the sensation of focusing on auxiliary organs when targeting someone.

But that seems to have helped No. 26 quite a bit.

The colorful hues swirling on his body gathered in one place, forming the shape of a massive eye.

「I did it!」

No. 26 sent a wave filled with joy.

At that moment, my auxiliary organs stood rigid and warned me.

That there was a very dangerous being in front of me.

The muscles in my combat arms and legs contracted with tension, and the flow of acidic blood inside me accelerated.

This feeling was exactly the same as when I first encountered Siheyon Yujin or Black.

‘It worked.’

The Deep Sea Terror effect that No. 26 used must be affecting me.

As I expected, the fear gripping my heart quickly disappeared. I recognized that I was being affected by Deep Sea Terror and dispelled it.

[Zzzz(Well done)]

「Aren’t I amazing? Aren’t I?」

[Zz(Yes)]

I patted the delighted No. 26.

If I could feel fear, ordinary crew members would certainly be unable to withstand it.

[Zzzzzz zzzz(Throw me like before)]

「Okay.」

He wrapped his thick tentacle around my waist.

「Here we go!」

The tentacle holding me swung greatly, propelling my body upward.

When I transformed into the hunting form, I was about 5m long excluding the tail and quite heavy, so No. 26 couldn’t throw me very high.

But now, with my reduced size and weight, I could fly toward the patrol ships at very high speed.

In mid-air, I extended my combat arm and shot my blood-sucking tentacle toward the patrol ship.

As soon as the red tentacle touched the ship, the small saw teeth on its surface dug into the ship’s outer wall.

With my body secured, I pulled in the blood-sucking tentacle and attached myself to the patrol ship.

The crew must have realized I was aboard, as two turrets mounted on the left side of the patrol ship aimed at me.

I flattened myself to dodge the first shot, then crawled toward the nearest turret.

Approaching the turret, I activated my ghost claws and inserted my hand inside.

I deactivated only the tips of my claws to cut the electrical circuits.

‘One down.’

The turret targeting me malfunctioned and soon stopped.

The remaining turret tried to shoot me, but I had already prepared for that.

The plates on my back, arranged in two rows, collided with each other, emitting a wave that disrupted the machinery.

Affected by the wave, sparks flew from the plasma turret’s joints before it was completely neutralized.

Having successfully hijacked it, the turret’s control was now in my hands.

The two turrets on the opposite side couldn’t shoot me because I was in their blind spot, clinging to the outer wall.

‘That takes care of the external threats.’

I can sense the crew shouting inside through my auxiliary organs.

The enemies are in a state of panic due to this unexpected new threat.

‘Not enough yet.’

If they contact the other patrol ships from here to shoot me, I’m finished.

I need to shake them up more to prevent that.

My auxiliary organs began to twitch, searching for someone among the crew who smelled strongly of metal.

While my auxiliary organs worked, I controlled the hijacked turret to target another ship.

When screams and curses from inside intensified, the turret spewed an intense green energy mass.

The energy sphere flew straight and struck the rear area of another patrol ship.

The hit patrol ship shook violently but seemed to have no major problems with flight.

‘It’s definitely difficult to control directly.’

Meanwhile, my auxiliary organs found the target I wanted.

I activated Watcher of Terror on him, then crawled to the side of the patrol ship.

At the door where crew members board and disembark, I used my ghost claws to destroy the terminal inside.

‘Let’s end this quickly.’

After tearing off the half-open door, I entered the patrol ship.

–

“Damn it! Left turret 1 neutralized!”

“Left turret 2 also uncontrollable! Do something!”

“We have no choice but to turn off the firing assist AI system and reactivate it!”

The inside of Defense Fleet’s patrol ship No. 1408 was complete chaos.

Until just now, they had been pursuing a green flying object when an unknown enemy suddenly attacked them.

“Where did it go? It’s not visible on the right camera!”

“Found on the upper camera! What’s it doing?”

“Whatever it’s doing, we need to knock it off!”

While the crew in the situation room were devising countermeasures against the monster, the defense forces aboard maintained vigilance of their surroundings.

Soldier No. 13 was also maintaining tension, preparing for any emergency that might occur, just like his comrades.

Suddenly, all the lights inside the patrol ship went out.

Then, the noise that had filled the ship disappeared in an instant.

“Huh?”

The startled Soldier No. 13 held his Gauss rifle and watched the front.

“W-what’s going on?”

Shortly after, emergency lights came on, bathing the ship’s interior in red. He could only be horrified at the scene revealed.

Crew members lay on the cold metal floor, torn to shreds, while hideous monsters were devouring the corpses.

“U-uwaaaaah!”

“Hey, what’s wrong?”

When he screamed, someone put a hand on his shoulder.

Thinking it was a comrade, Soldier No. 13 turned around and gasped.

A creature identical to the monsters eating the corpses was smiling at him.

The monster, bleeding black blood from its eyes and with its mouth torn to its ears, bared its teeth at him.

“D-dieeeeee!”

Soldier No. 13 shot the monster with his Gauss rifle.

The monster, with a hole the size of a ping-pong ball in its abdomen, collapsed.

The monsters that had been eating corpses howled and rushed toward him.

“Uaaaah! Die! Die! Dieeeee!”

With each burst from the muzzle, another monster fell.

Perhaps realizing their comrades had died, countless monsters appeared from other rooms and poured in.

As Soldier No. 13 tried to aim his rifle at them, a metal bullet flew from somewhere and pierced his head.

Only after his head was pierced did he realize who the monsters he had killed were.

“Fuck! This crazy bastard!”

“Hey! Get a grip! Just hold on a little longer!”

“Medic!”

“Headquarters! This is ship 1408! Soldier 13 has gone insane and shot our own men!”

Without time to regret what he had done, Soldier No. 13’s consciousness sank into darkness.

–

‘Success.’

Thanks to the soldier affected by Watcher of Terror, 7 out of 20 people on board were killed.

‘It’s a downgraded version of Deep Sea Terror, but still quite useful.’

Watcher of Terror can be considered a single-target version of Deep Sea Terror.

Of course, unlike Deep Sea Terror, it has the disadvantage that the effect of driving the target insane only activates by chance, but it’s still a powerful characteristic.

‘It’s especially excellent for disrupting enemies like now.’

While the enemies were at a loss, I was running through the patrol ship’s internal corridors.

Thanks to the soldier who went insane from Watcher of Terror and was firing his weapon in the situation room, the defense forces were all gathered there.

Without them noticing, I sprinted through the corridors, eliminating crew members I encountered.

“P-please spare me! Please… gack!”

I ripped off the head of a crew member who was kneeling and begging, bit it once, and swallowed it whole.

As I was eating the corpse and rushing toward the situation room, bullets flew from that direction.

‘Tungsten bullets, huh? Not a chance.’

Conventional bullets, unlike armor-piercing rounds, cannot penetrate my exoskeleton.

I pointed my head toward the situation room door where the soldiers were hiding, and opened my mouth wide.

The microorganism production organ inside my throat activated, spewing out a mass full of fungal spores.

“Argh! Shit!”

The fungal spores flew in a parabolic arc, passing over the soldiers’ heads and landing inside the situation room.

With a sound like throwing a bag of food waste on the floor, the mass exploded.

“What is this… uweeeeeegh!”

“Khuheheuk! Kueeeeeegh…”

The screams of soldiers hit by fragments of the mass can be heard.

The Decay Fungal Organ, a fusion of Pain Spear and Breath of Fire characteristics, has effects quite different from its components.

It inherited only the feature of worsening regeneration from Pain Spear and the feature of spewing something from the mouth from Breath of Fire, while the rest is completely different from the effects of the materials.

‘It’s an infection-related fusion characteristic after all.’

Decay Fungal Organ is a characteristic that creates fungal spores that cause wounds to necrotize and decay.

When the spores burst, the fungi inside spread out and infect other organisms.

To prevent infection, antifungal agents or remedies must be used for treatment.

‘If one keeps a clear mind, it wouldn’t be difficult to solve, but it’s tough during combat.’

In the game, when a player is hit by fungi from the Decay Fungal Organ, they immediately enter a panic state. According to the setting, organisms affected by the fungi suffer the pain of their entire body rotting in real-time.

Without someone to help, it’s impossible to perform first aid alone.

“U-ugeeeeeegh…”

“Kueeee…”

The soldiers who had been vomiting or screaming in extreme pain were now barely breathing.

Their faces were covered with pustules the size of fingernails, and their clothes were soaked with sweat, blood, and pus.

Some were already bleeding black blood from their noses and mouths, suggesting the decay had reached their internal organs.

After confirming that all personnel on the ship were completely neutralized, I entered the situation room.

‘It would be nice to control it directly, but I can’t handle a warship alone.’

I might manage a small exploration vessel, but from patrol ship models classified as warships, I lack enough hands to control them. At most, I can only use AI for autonomous navigation.

‘It’s a shame, but I have to do what I can.’

I set the direction toward the allied patrol ship shown on the radar and instructed the AI to charge at full speed.

The patrol ship’s engine roared, and the situation room where I stood shook violently. While the patrol ship advanced fiercely toward its target, I returned the way I came.

Crawling back to the outer wall of the patrol ship, I saw that one of the two remaining ships was already falling toward the ground.

No. 26 must be disrupting the crew with Deep Sea Terror from the ground.

Meanwhile, the patrol ship I was on and the enemy were rapidly approaching each other. The enemies belatedly realized what this ship was trying to do and hurriedly changed direction.

As the ships barely grazed past each other, I extended my blood-sucking tentacle and transferred to the other patrol ship.

The patrol ship carrying the fungus-infected soldiers flew toward the dome surrounding the city in the distance, having lost its pilot.

「Adult!」

Adhigh sends a wave to me from afar.

‘We’ll greet each other later.’

Only one ship remains—the one I’m on now.

One last small patrol ship, and 20 crew members inside. They are the final enemies.

If the enemies had shot the patrol ship I was on despite the damage, things wouldn’t have turned out this way.

They made the wrong choice, and now they have only one option left.

To be ravaged.