Became an Evolving Space Monster - Chapter 375
Only Noblemtl
‘… No. If that was the case, I wouldn’t have given you credit in the first place.’
Besides, the customer he met, ‘S’, was cautious and suspicious about everything. The chances of him becoming friendly with the pirates who had just appeared here were low.
‘Then something must have gone wrong.’
“Can’t you keep in touch?”
“Yes. It looks like there’s a problem with the satellite, as the signal itself isn’t working.”
“Are there any signs of hypersonic navigation around?”
“Not detected.”
The Dorane Constellation is an uninhabited land. Those who reside in Asuka 44 are practically the only intelligent beings here. In such a situation, it is safe to say that there is no possibility of being attacked by someone.
‘It would be fortunate if there was a problem with the satellite and it is being repaired.’
Looking at it that way, the atmosphere wasn’t very good.
If it were any other customer, I would have backed out immediately, but it had to be Customer S. If I break the contract here, it will be difficult to meet a customer like that again.
“What would you like to do?”
“hmm.”
The second officer standing next to the captain asked him.
Sechan, who had been staring at the hologram without answering, finally made a decision.
“Approach Asuka-44 and send a communication again. Even if there is no communication satellite, the signal will be received as you get closer to the planet.”
“All right.”
Once the destination was set, the rocket boosters mounted on the side and rear of the hull fired.
As the ship moved, the holographic map changed from moment to moment. The ship, printed in a triangular shape, gradually approached Asuka 44. No other structures were displayed.
“The communications satellite is not detected. Is something wrong?”
“You’ll know when you go.”
“…You must move carefully.”
Sechan nodded slightly at the vice-captain’s advice.
After about an hour, Sechan’s ship arrived near Asuka44.
“Okay. Try again.”
“yep.”
The crew, under Sechan’s direction, attempted to communicate. Whether it was a ship or a structure, if there was any communication equipment on the planet, they would receive the signal.
Everyone watched in silence as the hologram displayed the message, ‘Attempting communication.’
And after a while, the message changed.
“Communication link with ground has been established.”
“Whew. That’s good. Where is the connected location?”
The sailor in charge of communications tilted his head as he manipulated the computer.
“Oh, that’s it, it’s connected to the ship’s communications network, not the base.”
“Ship communication? No, where is the base and can you contact the ship? No, more importantly, why isn’t there a video connection?”
“I will check.”
The sailor typed a message and relayed it to the other party. Then a new message appeared at the bottom of the hologram.
“Due to the abnormal activity of the supervolcano, the base has collapsed, and the volcanic ash has covered the atmosphere, causing radio interference. Please understand… What the hell is this?”
“It is true that Asuka44’s volcanic activity is intense….”
“No, but that’s true. I’ve been there and it’s not at the level where it can be destroyed by something like that.”
Sechan had visited Asuka44’s base several times before for business purposes. So he knew how sturdy the base was. It was so strong that it would never collapse unless a bomb exploded inside.
Another message arrived, and the sailor acknowledged it.
“It is said that the personnel at the base are currently evacuating the remaining ships to a safe location.”
“Evacuating? Activate your detection system and check if that’s true.”
“yes.”
This ship is a modified version of the large destroyer of the Edgerton family. As it is a ship that is actively engaged in battle, it is on a different level from the scrap ships used by ordinary pirates. The detection system is also much more high-performance.
An external camera mounted outside the hull began to operate, taking pictures of the points where communication was established. Soon, the results captured by the camera were transmitted as a holographic image.
Several ivory-colored ships were anchored on the black ground. Most of them had blackened outer walls, and some showed signs of slight damage to their guns or propulsion systems.
And in front of it, small structures that appeared to have been installed temporarily were visible.
“What’s the status? Is it because of the volcanic eruption like you said?”
“There are traces of changes in the metal structure due to high temperature.”
“That part looks like it was damaged by a collision.”
“What is the response of the organism?”
“Life signs confirmed within a 10km radius of the connected ship. It appears that the error was caused by radio interference.”
I ran several detection systems, but apart from the camera capturing the ship and the makeshift structure, they all came up empty. It was clear that the problem was caused by a supervolcano erupting on the planet, just as they said.
‘No, but that’s true.’
Sechan didn’t understand.
They are the ones who came all the way to this remote constellation’s volcanic planet to live there. I don’t know if it’s right that a few volcanoes would erupt and completely destroy everything like that.
While he was still holding onto his suspicions, another message arrived.
“Captain, given the circumstances, they want to come over here and get the items.”
“You’re coming to my ship?”
“How do I do it?”
“… … .”
As soon as he heard that, he was convinced.
‘This chewy, something is decorating.’
Customer S has never sent anyone on his ship before. He only does business from his own base.
It was suspicious to anyone who saw that someone suddenly wanted to trade on the other party’s ship in this situation.
After a moment of silence, he narrowed his eyes and looked at the hologram.
“Tell them I’ll be going from here, Captain. Get the personnel to go down and prepare the equipment I’ll be using.”
“It’s dangerous!”
The vice-captain also felt that this situation was suspicious and tried to stop Se-chan.
But he had already made up his mind. His gaze turned to the ships captured on camera.
‘I don’t know what kind of trick you’re talking about…’
As a former military man, he knows how valuable those randomly placed ships are.
‘The base over there has been destroyed and there are few ships. There probably won’t be many survivors.’
It is unclear whether we can continue to trade like this. If so, it might not be a bad idea to take this opportunity to sort out our relationship.
“From now on, the vice-captain will assume the temporary captain position. The period will be until I return.”
“Captain!”
Sechan, who had left command to the vice-captain, left the situation room.
Customer S is a customer who has made a lot of profit for him. He is grateful for that, but he is a pirate. He has no intention of leniently extracting more from his opponents.
‘Let’s take the ships as souvenirs of the end of the deal.’
Ten minutes later, a transport ship descended from Sechan’s ship through the planet’s atmosphere.
–
“What time do you expect to arrive?”
“It is estimated to take 20 minutes on foot.”
“Make sure all life support functions are working properly. And don’t forget to check the spare oxygen capsules and medical kit.”
“yep!”
Inside a transport ship that landed dozens of kilometers away from its destination.
The 21 pirates checked their equipment one last time before setting off.
“The wild animals that live here have thick-skinned hides. So, penetrating and armor-piercing rounds are the norm. Replace them all.”
“All right!”
The members of the Hamilton Cartel are all former Megacorp soldiers. They had participated in many battles before becoming pirates. Perhaps that was why the sight of them checking their armor and Gauss rifles looked so familiar.
“All power, power suits activated. Let’s go.”
At the command of their leader, Sechan Hamilton, twenty pirates activated the bio-helmets on their heads.
This place is a hellish planet boiling with high temperatures. That’s why everyone has prepared special reinforced suits that are mainly used for space combat.
The reinforced suit worn by the pirates is a new product released by the Carmelda family.
Unlike the general intermediate-level reinforced suit, this one completely protects the entire body like a spacesuit. Not only the defensive power, but also the muscle strength support function is greatly enhanced, allowing operations to be carried out even in harsh environments.
The door of the transport ship opened, and Sechan got out first. He was followed by pirates wearing thick armor.
“This is some really shitty weather, Captain.”
“It’s like this no matter where you go on a volcanic planet. Everyone, be careful because if your helmet comes off, you’ll die.”
Contrary to what he tells his subordinates, Sechan is not wearing a helmet. He is wearing specially made goggles, but most of his face is exposed.
The air outside the transport ship is hot enough to instantly burn the skin of a normal human.
Yet he was able to come out with his face bare thanks to his skin. His face, unprotected by his goggles, was covered with rough and hard leather like a rock.
Sechan received a genetic transplant procedure that only Megacorp’s top executives can receive. Hot air and toxic air pose no threat to him.
In fact, he checked the communication status without any particular reason.
“Chief, can you hear me from above?”
“Communication is smooth. No problems.”
“Okay. Then let’s move.”
“yes!”
21 people armed with cutting-edge mechanical equipment began running.
Strangers gallop across a desolate land covered in fire and ash. Their footprints on the black earth are quickly erased by the volcanic ash blown by the hot wind.
Since they were running while wearing reinforced suits, their speed was surprisingly fast. With each step they took, their massive bodies would leap several meters into the air.
Even while running, the eyes were constantly moving. This was to check for any hazards in the surroundings. The visor attached to the helmet also continuously outputs various information related to the surrounding environment to support the user.
“Movement detected 150m away in the 2 o’clock direction!”
“Confirmed by gas erupting from underground! No movement of life detected.”
“Hey you idiot, are you out of your mind?”
“sorry!”
Ten minutes after departure, no significant danger factors were found.
Everyone was relieved that they hadn’t met any enemies, but it wasn’t a smooth ride.
‘… Something feels strange.’
Planets with extreme natural environments, such as volcanic planets, icy planets, and ocean planets, have something in common.
Not only the environment, but also the native species are at great risk.
As befitting monsters that have adapted to harsh environments, their physical specs are incredibly high and their aggressiveness is also extremely high. So Sechan predicted that he would encounter a wild animal at least once while going to where Customer S was.
‘But I didn’t see any living thing for 10 minutes.’
To be exact, no ‘creatures’ were found during the move.
There were no sightings of beasts moving in the distance, no sightings of monsters in the sky, no signs of predators, no sightings of animal tracks.
It was as if no living thing lived in this area.
“First officer, it’s Sechan. How are the life signs detected?”
“We are still detecting life signals all around, but we are not able to properly detect them due to radio interference.”
“What about Customer S?”
“I understand that they will be visiting in two hours. There has been no response since the communication ended.”
“Okay, keep trying to detect life signs. Contact me as soon as you get proper results.”
A sense of anxiety like black smoke rose up, but I had no intention of canceling the operation.
‘Maybe I was lucky and didn’t encounter any monsters.’
It may be that they have not encountered any predators by chance. Or perhaps this area itself was originally uninhabited.
‘Let’s get this sorted out as quickly as possible and get out of here.’
In that way, he forced himself to calm the anxiety in his heart.
Ten more minutes after disconnecting communications with the first officer, they arrived at their destination.
The pirates hid behind a high rocky hill and watched the action.
Three cult ships were carelessly parked on the black ground. I had already confirmed this above, but upon seeing them in person, it was clear that they had landed in a hurry.
In front of the ships was a makeshift structure that appeared to be a temporary camp. The structure was in a half-finished state and looked quite unsightly.
“As we’ve already discussed, six people will be on each ship. The remaining three will search the interior of the temporary camp.”
“yes.”
“Move as quickly and quietly as possible so they can’t respond. Do you understand?”
“yes!”
“Then let’s begin.”
With Sechan’s words, the pirates burst out from the rocky hill. In an instant, they each entered the ships and structures they were searching.
If any of them had fallen behind even a little, they would have seen the sight.
This means that the rocky hill that had been standing still has crept into the ground.