Became an Evolving Space Monster - Chapter 242
Only Noblemtl
Ep. 241
Space Survival has one of the largest numbers of NPC species among contemporary VR games.
The diverse NPCs, which were created by appropriately mixing the characteristics of real animals and alien creatures appearing in various SF media, were considered to be the unique charm of Space Survival.
So there were players who focused on studying the ecosystem and the habits of various creatures that appear in the game. From small and cute creatures like the bubble amoeba to the space whale Sky Whale, the settings of many creatures were revealed by players.
But none have flown alongside the Gallagons, the so-called dragons of space.
I am doing something that no one else has been able to do.
Next to me is a Gallagon that looks like it is wearing a red dress over white skin. A Gallagon Adhai, a mixture of red and white, is flying beside me, flapping its four wings.
Behind us, flying in sync with each other, was a female Black Gallagon. The sight of Ham Ort, who had become a Black Gallagon in the morning, reminded me of a sky god carrying dark clouds.
Beside Ham Ort, four White Gallagons and nine Green Gallagons are flying together at the same speed. I and the 15 Gallagons are flying in formation over the endless snowfield.
If you bend your head slightly, you can see the white plains below. It was the ice plains we first encountered when we came to this planet.
When I first came here, I used to hide to avoid encountering other enemies, but not anymore.
“Big baby, big baby. Look over there.”
The 26 that was riding on top of me sent me a wave. I could see where the ice had sunk in the direction it was pointing with its tentacles, creating a large crater.
This is where we broke through the thick ice when we fought Jason. It had been quite some time since then, so there was a lot of snow, but the traces of our fight still remained.
We flew for a while longer, passing a large pit.
By the time the end of the plain, now filled only with snow and ice, came into view, it was already close to evening.
‘Is it over there?’
Located in the exact opposite direction from the mountain range, it was a canyon of enormous size. Something of that size would probably be observable from outside the planet.
Judging from its shape, it was a deep underground canyon, and the bottom was not visible even when looking down from above.
‘Surely that’s enough to hide the ship.’
The battleship Sachs Alpha is easily over a kilometer long. The canyon was wide and deep enough for the fearsome monster to hide in.
Since coming to this world, I have never fought on such a large battlefield. And this time, instead of luring the enemy, we are attacking them. He must have prepared his defenses, since he is not an idiot.
‘but….’
I gave a signal to Ham Ort. The guy who received my signal raised his head and looked up at the sky.
As the six black horns began to glow purple, the clouds floating in the sky began to move quickly. The swirling clouds soon took the form of a tornado and poured down to the ground.
The psychic technique that Black Gallagon can use, ‘Maelstrom’. A power close to a natural disaster is in Ham Ort’s hands.
No matter what traps he sets, most of them will be rendered ineffective against Maelstrom.
A torrent of water descended around the canyon, and lightning of psychic power pierced deep into the interior.
Purple lightning streaked across the canyon floor and walls. Purple spiderwebs spread across the pitch-black darkness where no light could be seen.
And from the walls and the invisible floor inside the canyon, thick smoke rose with a loud noise.
‘As expected, they installed a drone.’
“APD.”
The Heavenly Mother riding on Ham Ort sent a thought wave.
Pira Eleven hid an APD (Anti-Psychic Drone) on the canyon wall in case I brought Gallagon.
APD is a drone used by Star Union warships when fighting Gallagons or Cults. It is mainly used as a means of defense against energy weapons as it can absorb various energies including psychic powers.
And Gallagon’s flight is achieved by a combination of wingbeats and psychic powers. If psychic powers are disabled by APD, his flight speed drops significantly.
‘The screamers will strike then.’
It was obvious that they had planted them to attack us as soon as we entered the canyon. With the APD disabled, the Screamers would come out from hiding.
I waited for the guys to come out and attack.
But even though the supernatural lightning continued to strike, there was no response from inside the canyon. I focused all my senses on my auxiliary organs, but I felt no movement at all.
[Zuzuzuzuzuzuzuz (Can you see anything?)]
“No. Nothing.”
To my question, the Heavenly Mother shook her head.
As a griffon with an eagle head, she can see objects far away regardless of day or night. Furthermore, she is also a ranker like me. No matter how well the enemy hides himself, there is no way she wouldn’t notice.
‘What happened?’
Looking at the situation as it was going on, the only risk factor within the observable range from this location was APD.
Judging from the APD installation, it is clear that he was trying to prepare for an attack by the Gallagons. However, he must know that drones alone are not enough to subdue the Gallagons.
“What are the chances that we lost all the Screamers?”
“It’s unlikely. If it were, Pira Eleven would consider it a mission failure and choose to retreat.”
The androids of the Machine Council know their worth very well. They try to avoid damage as much as possible.
Even Pira Eleven would choose to run away if the situation was disadvantageous to them. If that was the case, they wouldn’t have placed APD in this valley.
In other words, the bastard didn’t run away. He wanted us to come in.
‘hmm.’
Thanks to the lightning flash, the inside of the canyon was visible and the canyon was wider at the bottom than at the top.
It’s a similar shape to a gourd. It’s easy to get in, but difficult to get out.
‘I need to change my strategy.’
Waiting for them to come out is inefficient and dangerous. If you give them time, Pira Eleven will produce new Screamers.
I also thought about destroying the canyon, but it seemed difficult because its scale was so large. It would take days of continuous psychic breath to completely collapse it. Not only would it take a long time, but it would also drain your stamina, so it wasn’t a good idea.
‘You have to go in yourself.’
I’ve been in this situation many times while playing games.
Aimop, who operates alone, often infiltrates and attacks enemy bases in this manner. There is nothing more disadvantageous than fighting on the enemy’s home ground, even though you are weaker than them.
Yet the reason I always won is simple.
‘Taking advantage of the enemy.’
He thinks this dungeon in the glacier will work to his advantage. He’s not wrong, but there’s something he doesn’t know.
I have a way to exploit his advantage. It’s a card I didn’t even use when fighting Screamers.
[Zuzu zuzuzu zuzuzu zuzuzuzu (Let’s find a place we can walk into)]
“Is there a way?”
[Yeah]
We were floating in the air, so we turned around and flew towards the ice plain. There was a place that could be called an entrance at the end of the canyon.
The entrance to the frozen canyon had walls that narrowed toward the top and were open at the bottom. It was more like a dungeon or cave where monsters lived than a canyon entrance.
I landed on the ice and looked around at the gallagons.
The operation I came up with was that the fewer people the better, because if we made a mistake, our own forces might also be attacked.
[Zzuzuzu zuzuzuzu zuzuzuzu zuzuzuzu zuzuzuzu (We’re the only ones going in. The rest of you wait outside)]
“Ham Ort” “The Daughter of the Meteor” “Protect” “Alone” “Do Not Send”
[Zuzu zuzuzuzu zuzuzu zuzuzu zuzuzu (No. Ham Ort has work to do.)]
He’s the only one among us who can intercept enemies from the air without restriction. If you want to provide support fire, it’s better for Ham Ort to wait outside.
[Zzuzuzuzuzu zuuuu zuzuzuzu zuzuzuzu (Don’t worry. Adhai won’t get hurt.)
The guy hesitated for a moment, then eventually followed my lead. The Gallagons took flight again, and No. 26, Adhai, Sky Mother, and PS-111 entered the canyon with me.
As the walls became narrower and deeper as they went up, the inside of the canyon was almost completely dark.
In addition, the wind coming through the hole in the top caused a constant ominous sound. It sounded like the roar of an animal or the whispering of thousands of people at the same time.
The good news is that none of us are afraid of it.
I stopped a little way from where we came in and prepared a trap to counterattack Pira Eleven.
‘Anyway, what I installed before is no longer needed.’
There are two cards that I plan to use when dealing with Pira Eleven. One of them is Nest.
I walked around and sprayed black mucus. The mucus that fell on the pure white ice hardened into tumors in an instant and contaminated the ice rink.
This isn’t a great place to set up a nest, but that doesn’t matter. If it can expand enough to cover the area around here, it’ll be able to deliver a fatal blow when fighting the thing.
“Are you going to do it like you did when you fought the 4th place player in the game?”
[Z (Yeah)]
Mother in Heaven immediately noticed what I was planning.
“What are you going to do with no special features?”
[Zuzu zuzuzuzu zuzu zuzuzu (In this situation, I have to adapt)]
“… I’m going to get cursed at.”
“What is it? Teach me too.”
“Me” “I’m curious” “Me too” “Tell me”
“You’ll know when you see it.”
After finishing all the work, I set off again with the kids.
As I went deeper, the floor sloped sharply inward. It was more like a passage leading underground than a canyon. It felt like I was entering the icy lake of hell that appears in classical literature.
“I have a strange feeling.”
“Feeling strange?” “Me.” “I don’t feel it.”
“I don’t know either.”
“It’s all over the place. It’s boring.”
Halfway in, No. 26 seemed to be in a bad mood. The body of the normally bright pink guy had turned a dark red, similar to a cherry.
“I can’t see anything.”
My Heavenly Mother and I diligently looked around, but we couldn’t see or feel anything. All we saw was ice and long, snake-like stalactite-like rock masses.
‘There’s no way he’d say something like that for no reason.’
As expected of a Sea Demon, he is very sensitive to energy flow and other aspects. There must be a reason why he feels something is strange.
As I was wondering what the problem was, PS-111 made a sound.
“A faint electronic signal is detected 1.5km ahead. It is presumed to be a XAX01-class battleship.”
“what?”
The ships they’ve hidden are already right in front of us. And yet, the enemies are nowhere to be seen. Even if they’re hiding well, it’s time for them to come out.
‘That can’t be. There must be something… Wait.’
The battle with the Outspacer that Heavenly Mother spoke of, No. 26’s reaction, and the current situation.
Something flashed in my head, and my gaze was drawn to a rock formation that resembled a snake.
It was a huge object that looked like a fossilized Ice Horror. I had thought it was just a boulder before, but not anymore.
I quickly approached the mass and gently placed my auxiliary organ over the surface.
A cold chill was felt first, followed by a faint smell of earth.
and….
‘Metallic smell!’
I lifted my head and stared at the canyon wall, removing my auxiliary organ. Now I think I know why I didn’t notice this.
There’s a very faint metallic smell coming from the entire canyon surrounding us.
The kids who saw me also immediately realized that the situation was not good. Before I could say anything, they quickly got into a fighting stance.
[Zuzu zuzuzu (Everyone get ready)]
The moment the waves flowed from the monster’s tentacles, the snake-shaped rock mass in front of me shook violently.
The ice and dirt covering the inside of the canyon are breaking apart. Inside, a snake, or rather a giant alloy hose, writhes.
Several metal hoses emerged from the ground, as if a demon had been immersed in the ice lake, poking its head out. At the end of the hoses was a being made of synthetic metal tubing and organic tissue, forming a gigantic face.
The face of a giant machine-made creature opened its eyes. A pair of red camera lenses looked down at us.
“Pira Eleven. Judgment. Special target A, which was being observed, was noticed sooner than expected. Plan changed. Mission continues.”
As the bastard opened his mouth, a mechanical noise so loud it made my auxiliary organs tingle erupted.