Became an Evolving Space Monster - Chapter 323
Only Noblemtl
As I was about to move again, Mother Heaven came between me and Isabel.
“I’m sorry, but give me a chance!”
[Zzu …
“I told you I’d give you time to talk before!”
She looked at me earnestly, even taking out the agate wings that she had hidden with tattoos. I could sense the desperate emotion in her eyes.
‘Conversation.’
I looked around with my auxiliary organs, keeping my eyes on her and Isabel. As I had already confirmed when chasing Isabel, this was a blind spot where the watchtower’s eyes could not reach. It was unlikely that the warriors would catch up to them unless they fought a big fight, but that didn’t mean there was no risk.
‘It’s true that fighting here isn’t a good idea.’
Aside from the fact that we could be caught by the cult, this is where the guy lured us. It’s almost like their home ground, so you never know what might happen during a fight.
‘For now, it’s better to build a positive relationship than to subdue Isabel.’
Currently, I am sealed from the ‘parasite colony’ because of Sihyeon Eugene’s relic weapon. In order to extract the information I want, I have no choice but to turn myself into a human-faced insect.
Eating Isabel isn’t necessarily a bad thing, since you can steal the perks, but the problem is the process of getting there. I haven’t seen the ending, but he’s also a ranker with a title of 22nd. He’s definitely not an easy opponent.
‘But during conversation, there is no opportunity to explore.’
While the Heavenly Mother is killing time, you can get information about Isabel and the surrounding area. You might get a clue about the guy’s weakness through the conversation. It’s also a pretty good option to give her another chance.
[Zuzu (good)]
“thank you.”
She nodded in gratitude.
I took a few steps back to watch their conversation.
I hadn’t paid much attention to her appearance because I had gotten into a fight right after meeting her, but now I was finally able to properly look at Isabel’s appearance.
It had the typical appearance of a Coldblood, with a head that was a mixture of a lizard and a human face, antennae on its head, and scales covering its entire body. The scales on its body were bright blue, with only its snout being a light sky blue. As I had already heard, it was quite short, and its arms and legs were thin, giving it an overall delicate feel.
Instead of the maid uniform worn by hotel staff, she was wearing old cloth. Judging by her exposed arms, thighs, and abdomen, it did not seem likely that she was hiding any additional weapons.
‘Coldbloods aren’t a race that relies on weapons, though.’
A fragile-looking body, short stature, and baggy clothes.
Even if you look at him again, he looks like a pitiful slave, but it’s all a trick. Considering his performance in the exploration battle, he’s an opponent you should never let your guard down.
I didn’t let go of the string of alertness and focused on surveillance as an auxiliary organ.
“I guess he’s not Morph Park after all. He’s doing the same things he does in the game here too.”
“No, Isabel.”
Isabel, too, was giving me all her attention. She was talking to the Heavenly Mother, but her eyes were fixed solely on me.
“He saved me from death.”
“You saved me? Morphbak?”
“It may be hard to believe, but it’s true. I didn’t plant any parasites. I’m not under his control, I’m just by his side as a colleague.”
“… … .”
Isabel was taken aback by what the Heavenly Mother had said.
‘Strictly speaking, it’s half a lie.’
The original reason I saved her was to use her for insurance purposes. That’s why I even planted parasites in her.
Of course, Isabel doesn’t know the inside story, and she doesn’t need to know.
“… Then why did you come here, Sister?”
The guy who had been silent opened his mouth again, perhaps because he had heard something unexpected.
“I came because I have something to ask you.”
“Any questions?”
“Yeah. Aimov and I had visions of reality as we grew up. We’re investigating what those visions mean.”
“vision….”
The moment she heard the word fantasy, Isabel’s gaze turned for the first time to her heavenly mother, not to me.
“Did you see ‘Memory’ too, Sister?”
“Remember? Did you also have a vision of your time as a human?”
Instead of answering her question, Isabel asked it back.
“What choice did you make in front of your memories, Sister?”
“me?”
“Did you get eaten by memories? Or did you swallow memories?”
“Neither. I only glimpsed the memory.”
After hearing her answer, Isabel’s eyes turned back to me. It seemed as if she wanted to ask me what choice I had made, but I remained silent.
“That guy is similar to me. I just took a peek at his memories.”
To be exact, I fought and won against the ‘real me’ that was realized as an illusion, but I didn’t kill it. If Isabel’s words are correct, I would say that I was neither eaten nor consumed by the illusion.
Heavenly Mother knows that too, but she seems to have deliberately left it vague because she didn’t know how Isabel would react.
“We want to hear about the choices you made.”
“… … .”
Isabel stared at us silently, then closed her eyes.
After a while, the guy opened his eyes and opened his mouth.
“Sister Seo-ah. Do you remember how long it’s been since we last contacted each other?”
“It’s been a little over eight years.”
“It’s been 8 years and 2 months. A lot has happened since you left.”
“Isabel?”
When I looked back at the reptile’s eyes, I felt no emotion. There was no longing like when he saw his heavenly mother, nor was there any anger like when he fought me.
She took a deep breath as she met his eyes filled with emptiness.
“They trampled my friends and the land we built.”
“!”
It was just a passing remark from Isabel, but the Heavenly Mother seemed to understand what it meant. I could feel her heartbeat growing stronger.
“Don’t worry about it. It’s been too long since I’ve been here to blame anyone.”
“… … .”
“I’ll give you the answer you want, but please grant me a favor first.”
The eyes, which resembled ashes left behind by a fire, spoke to us.
‘ask?’
“…What do you want? If it’s something I, or rather we, can give you, I’ll give it to you.”
The Heavenly Mother asked, but Isabel shook her head.
“Promise me you’ll listen to me first. I’ll tell you what I want you to do later.”
With those words, Isabel closed her mouth.
It seemed like he had no intention of opening his mouth until we told him we would follow.
‘From the way you speak, it seems like you know quite a bit.’
It doesn’t seem like he was bluffing to get out of a bad situation. If he had been thinking about that, he would have lied or taken a different approach.
‘If you look at the body’s reaction, the possibility of it being a lie is slim.’
The auxiliary organs in each head monitor Isabelle’s every movement. Eye movements, heartbeats, breathing rhythms, muscle tremors – all flow through the air to the tips of the auxiliary organs under the jaw.
There is no detectable reaction when nervous or embarrassed, except for the trembling of the muscles on the side of the leg due to the amputation of the toe.
Unless the guy is a total liar, he’s probably at least somewhat knowledgeable about illusions.
‘Let’s talk some more.’
I moved my four legs and stood next to Mother of Heaven. She was startled, as if she had been dumbfounded by what Isabel had said.
“I didn’t expect you to make a counter offer. How unexpected.”
“It’s more surprising that Morphbak chose ‘conversation’.”
“Enough with the nonsense. I have something to ask you.”
I got a sharp reaction, but I ignored it and got straight to the point.
“You said you would impart the knowledge you know if I did you a favor, right?”
“okay.”
“Can I guarantee that you won’t lie to me when the job is done?”
The biggest question, after all, is whether Isabel will tell us the truth. What if she lies or intentionally leaves out important information? It’s all my fault.
Isabel wiggled her antennae as if she was displeased after hearing what I said.
“Don’t look at me like you.”
“I can’t grant you a favor unless I’m sure you’ll tell me the truth.”
“If you don’t believe me, just leave it alone.”
“Isabel!”
The Heavenly Mother shot a thought wave to tell her to stop, but Isabel paid no attention.
“If it doesn’t work out through dialogue, we’ll have to find another way.”
“Do you feel like I’m stuck here with no way out?”
Of course not.
We already know that the guy is hiding his abilities. The power of Vortex One, which can be called Coldblood’s true ability, remains, as well as the privileges that players who came to this world received.
It is unknown what abilities and special abilities he possesses, but at least he would be able to overcome the current crisis. Otherwise, he would not have survived until now.
But that goes for me too.
I’m also hiding my power. I have no intention of letting him go.
The other party has the information I need. The most certain way to obtain that knowledge at this point is to eat Isabel and turn her into a human-faced insect. If I catch the guy, I will have to persuade him with my teeth rather than with words like I am doing now.
‘The problem is that the risk factor is high….’
If the cults get involved while fighting Isabel, it’ll be a headache. The cult ranker currently on this planet will think I’m dead. If he finds out I’m alive, he’ll try to kill me somehow. If that happens, I’ll have to fight the cult ranker and Isabel at the same time.
‘But if you look at the priorities, it’s more important to get your hands on the guy.’
The reason I came to Berzan 02 was to get information from Isabelle. Now that I’ve found her, I think I’ve achieved half of my goal. If I fight here, the cult will know my existence, but it’s better than just letting her slip away like this.
“Wait a minute.”
Just as I was about to make a decision, Mother Heaven intervened.
“The problem is that Isabel could lie, right?”
[Z (Yeah)]
“that’s right.”
“Then there is a way to solve this.”
She took a few steps in front of me and stood between me and Isabel.
“Isabel, give me the contract with Vortex One. If I break it, I will pay the price.”
“what?”
[Z(what?)]
Isabel’s eyes flinched at the sudden words of her old friend. He must have been quite shaken, for the first time his heartbeat shook greatly.
I too was surprised by the words spoken by the Heavenly Mother.
Vortex One, nicknamed the Demon of the Universe.
As their nickname suggests, all of their activities are carried out through contracts. Even Coldblood’s ability to use Vortex One’s power is all thanks to contracts.
Depending on which Vortex One’s power you borrow, you can use abilities with completely different effects, such as strengthening yourself or destroying something with incredible force.
Of course, the stronger the borrowed ability, the greater the price required. The risk of not being able to pay that price also increases.
The price of the contract varies greatly depending on the severity and type of power borrowed, but the risks of breaking it are completely different, as it can result in death and even permanent damage to the player.
Here, Coldblood has one way to minimize the risk of failing to complete a contract due to his racial trait.
This is the use of an offering. If you transfer the risk that you should take in the event of a breach of contract to the offering, you can minimize the damage.
Of course, if the unpaid price continues to pile up, the sacrifices will be useless, but that is not the important part now.
Even if it is a light contract, the risks are very harsh. There is no way that Mother in Heaven wouldn’t know that.
Even though he knew that, he declared that he would take responsibility for Isabel’s lies.
“If I lie, my sister will die.”
“Then you don’t have to lie.”
“Why are you doing such a useless thing now?”
“I think it’s more useless for the two of you to fight here.”
“… … .”
At those words, Isabel closed her mouth. The Heavenly Mother, who had taken her gaze away from the boy, turned to look at me.
There was no wavering in her beautiful amber eyes. She had already made up her mind.
“If this is it, Aimov, can you believe it too?”
[Z (Yeah)]
I gave a brief nod of agreement.
It’s not that I agreed because I thought it would be okay for her to die.
Coming here, Heavenly Mother has become an important companion to me. Although she is less important than 26 or Adhai, who I consider to be my family, she is also a precious person.
The reason I agreed, however, was because Isabel’s reaction was quite intense. The guy who seemed to be detached from all relationships was greatly shaken when the Heavenly Mother said she would risk her life.