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[Translator – Seraph]
[Proofreader – Draxx]
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Chapter 461
Freed from her restraints, Adhai accelerated at full speed, flying to where her companions waited.
The spined monsters had already ceased their attack and fled. PS-111, battered and alone, was the only one left behind.
｢Thank… you… for the help.｣
Perhaps it was thanks to the decreasing distance; their telepathic waves managed to connect, albeit weakly. PS-111 expressed its gratitude.
｢Your｣｢body…｣｢Are you｣｢okay?｣｢You're｣｢hurt a lot.｣
｢Core components, undamaged.｣
Though much of it was damaged, it wasn't enough to hinder PS-111’s ability to fight. Its camera-lens eye rolled as it studied Adhai carefully.
｢I… notice scales, wings damaged.｣
｢No problem.｣
Adhai spun lightly on the spot, half a turn. The red lightning flowing across her body flashed with the movement.
This was unlike any defensive ability PS-111 had seen before. It realized this little gallagon had upgraded her power to a new form.
PS-111 found itself curious about her exact capabilities, but the battle was far from over. It turned its gaze to the remaining enemies.
Most of the swarming entities had been slain by Adhai. Only a handful of fish-like monsters remained.
But the real problem was the creature resembling a blue-yellow jellyfish. It possessed some mysterious force that enhanced the swarm entities, and it was still there.
｢The enemy, the one like a Little Adult, made the small ones stronger.｣
｢That… is correct.｣
｢What’s｣｢its weakness?｣
PS-111 fixed its lens on the distant enemy.
This place seemed empty, as if nothing existed here. But that wasn't true.
A fierce struggle was underway between the energy field released by the foe and the warp particles PS-111 emitted.
In the process, PS-111 managed to analyze part of the enemy's ability.
｢The enemy is an Outspacer Queen. Its weapon is an energy wave.｣
｢Energy wave?｣
Higher-ranking Outsparcer entities can emit their own unique bio-energy frequencies. These are primarily used for commanding subordinates or communicating within their swarm.
But this entity’s wave went beyond mere communication. Through these energy waves, it could manipulate other organisms’ metabolism or control and block various energies.
It was with this wave that it altered the path of a psychic breath attack, enhanced its allies, and performed all manner of feats.
｢But I feel nothing.｣
｢That wave. It doesn’t affect the little ones.｣
Yet, this power came with a fatal flaw.
To forcibly empower or weaken other organisms, and control energy at will, the queen needed its energy wave. That meant, in any scenario where the wave failed to function properly, it would be seriously weakened.
In fact, the enemy was unable to manipulate the bodily functions of either Adhai or PS-111.
In Adhai’s case, her signature red barrier blocked all attacks. PS-111 defended itself by using Prometheus-class warp particles to disrupt the wave’s activity.
The queen tried various ways to break through, but PS-111’s swift countermeasures blocked them all.
Of course, their situation wasn’t exactly secure, either. PS-111 had a slight advantage, but only barely. The queen was also jamming their telepathic communications, making dialogue difficult.
Thus, both sides became deadlocked. But with the swarm entities neutralized, only the jellyfish queen remained. If Adhai could reach the queen, the fight would end there. No energy wave could make the queen a match for Adhai.
｢That’s why, I have to approach directly…｣
Adhai was about to explain her fighting strategy when something unexpected happened.
The Outspacer Queen resembling Number 26 suddenly lashed out its tentacles, seizing the fish monsters and devoured them whole.
｢?｣｢Aren’t they allies?｣
｢They are.｣
｢Then why eat them?｣
According to PS-111’s data, Outsparcers like Amorphs could assimilate other organisms, incorporating their strengths and traits into the swarm. The genetic information inside each creature served as a kind of resource.
The swarm creatures were now critically weakened. To preserve vital genetic traits, the queen appeared to have eaten her own kind.
｢The enemy seeks the power of living beings, much like the Amorph.｣
｢Like the Big Adult?｣
｢Yes. Gaining power by consuming organisms. Eating weak kin to conserve strength.｣
｢No! Big Adult wouldn’t eat allies!｣
Adhai, annoyed by the comparison, shook her head furiously.
｢Eating allies is bad! That’s why I’ll destroy this enemy!｣
｢Direct approach. I will destroy it.｣
｢Understood.｣
With those words, Adhai tensed her body and launched forward.
The speed was so intense she looked like a streak of red lightning. In an instant, the little gallagon closed the gap.
Just before the two collided, the queen’s tentacles flared open. The energy wave released was twice as powerful as any before.
A force strong enough to bend light itself blocked Adhai’s path. For the first time, the rapidly flying gallagon came to a halt.
The tentacles unleashing the wave trembled, as did the slender body of the gallagon. An invisible clash shook the very space, a contest of strength between a gigantic specter and a red dwarf.
｢Dlrjs Qnfrksmdgkek!｣
Outwardly, the winner seemed clear. But reality was different.
Slowly, Adhai pushed forward. The tremor in the tentacles grew more frantic, yet it changed nothing.
Eventually, the tentacles reached their limit snapping one by one. Energy waves and flesh scattered into the void. Freed from her shackles, Adhai flashed like a thunderbolt, driving herself through the enemy.
Only thanks to a desperate dodge did the queen survive, though now more than half of its body was tattered and torn.
Crippled, the queen tried desperately to flee, stirring its few remaining tentacles. Pointless PS-111 was blocking any attempt at superluminal escape.
All that awaited the queen now was death.
｢It’s over.｣
Just as Adhai was about to strike the final blow
She froze. Something strange was spreading through the dark void, a formless, sinister sensation.
｢?｣
It scraped at the tentacle-clusters by her lips, a feeling both dreadful and familiar.
This time, however, it was more than twice as powerful as before.
Abandoning her attack, Adhai rushed back to PS-111.
｢Something’s wrong. Danger over there.｣
PS-111 sensed it, too.
For some unknown reason, the warp particles it had spread throughout the void were vanishing.
And from the place where those warp particles disappeared, a small figure emerged.
｢A dwarf?｣
The entity that appeared suddenly was a strange mix of human and animal features.
Adhai wondered aloud, but neither she nor PS-111 believed it was truly human.
As if to answer their doubts, the human-shaped figure began to change.
The scaly skin cracked open, limbs twisting grotesquely. From the crushed flesh, black bones sprouted instead of blood or tissue. Ripping through the skin, the bones fanned out into thin, feather-like spikes.
In seconds, the bony feathers covered everything but its face and continued to grow.
Soon, dozens of wings made of bone crowded the space, and the transformation started from a human-sized form ended only when it reached about half the queen’s size. At the center of the wings was the head of a human girl, child-sized.
The mutated creature approached the queen. As if they were old acquaintances, the battered queen stumbled to stand behind the monster.
｢Those two, they’re allies too.｣
｢Agreed.｣
No one knew how that thing had come here. One thing was certain: it was on the queen’s side.
In other words, it was their enemy.
｢It appeared｣｢out of nowhere｣
｢Yes, that's correct. Not an ordinary enemy.｣
Adhai also knew that, thanks to PS-111’s power, superluminal navigation could be blocked and that power was in effect even here.
Even the Amorph, whom Adhai deeply respected, could not escape that rule.
But this monster had just materialized here, as if scoffing at such absolute law. Despite PS-111’s limits, it had arrived.
｢The new enemy｣｢is strong｣｢Be careful｣
｢Understood. But it’s all right.｣
｢?｣
Instead of answering further, PS-111 turned its body away. Adhai also turned to follow its gaze.
Its red-lensed eye looked toward the planet behind them, a world that, thanks to its endless seas, was painted blue. On its surface, a tiny, glowing dot was quickly growing larger, pink light shining.
｢We, too, have reinforcements.｣
Just earlier, when Adhai unveiled her new technique, an enormous surge of energy was released. The resulting shockwave swept through the upper atmosphere and reached deep beneath the planet’s oceans.
｢It’s the little one!｣
Now, having received that silent message, Number 26 arrived together with Isabel.
｢Sister, why did communications….wait, what’s going on?｣
｢Enemy attack.｣
｢Bad one.｣｢Strong.｣｢We need to combine our strength.｣
｢Right!｣
Now, to face the newly arrived foe, all of the Amorph’s family had gathered.
The second round was about to begin.
***
When I opened my eyes, I found myself in someone’s living room.
Golden sunlight filled the space; the room felt gentle and cozy.
I was sitting on the sofa in that place.
‘A hallucination…’
Ever since I met that being who called itself an ‘information function entity’, illusions had stopped appearing. The last time I saw one was when I cocooned myself after capturing the Arcane Orca back then, nothing appeared.
So I thought nothing would come this time, either. Yet here it was, unexpectedly.
‘… May as well look around.’
There was surely a reason why the hallucination had returned after a pause. I stood up, scanning the living room.
This was neither my childhood home nor the apartment I remembered last before coming to this world. This place didn’t exist in my memories.
Yet for all that, it felt entirely natural. Not only was there no sense of strangeness, but instead a deep familiarity, as if I’d spent a long time here.
Then I noticed the photos on the living room wall.
Pictures of a young couple at places that looked like mountain resorts or seaside locations. One showed the woman with a swollen belly clearly, a married pair living here.
Curiously, their faces were blurred out, as if pixelated. Every photo was the same.
‘Why do they seem so familiar…?’
I felt sure I knew these two people. Especially the woman with the man I’d seen her recently.
‘I can’t see their faces, but still…’
As confusion grew while I stared at the photos, I heard the sound of the door opening.
“Oh? Daddy must be home early.”
A woman’s voice followed.
Turning, I saw a lady holding a child. Perhaps because the sun was streaming in, their faces were hidden from view.
Yet I could sense what expressions they wore: surprise, happiness, joy swirling together. With those feelings, the woman’s lips moved.
She called my name.
And in that instant, I opened my eyes again.
｢Grk?｣
I could feel mucus flowing over my carapace and the chill that hung in the air sensations I’d experienced countless times before.
Yet another evolution had finished.
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[Translator – Seraph]
[Proofreader – Draxx]
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