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[Translator – Seraph]
[Proofreader – Draxx]
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Chapter 467
The bio-garden is a trait that lets me manipulate the nest’s mucus to create structures into any form I want.
The reason I chose this trait, which had been so useful when hunting Space Dogs back in the MegaCorp colonies, was simple.
‘This side has less risk.’
Being able to fully wield another creature’s abilities is already an incredible advantage. But the potential and benefits of the Essence Fusion System far exceed that.
I don’t know how many more traits I’ll gain in the future, and I have no intention of throwing that away.
Besides, unlike Joy who could balance out her weaknesses thanks to Fourth ranker’s help I have no such means. If I gain a weakness, I have to live with it.
This world is a dangerous place where life-threatening crises strike frequently. In a game, if you die because of a weakness, you just try again. Here, you don’t get that luxury.
So, this time, I chose the path that seemed safer.
‘Let’s merge them, then.’
I slotted my unnecessary traits in as enhancement material and confirmed the selection.
｢Merging Joy (Joy Spencer)’s perk with the Bio-Garden trait. Movement^ꂈ⦶⍝ Trait Enhancement System intervention!｣
｢Trait refinement in progress｣
｢Evolved into the Terramorph trait!｣
｢Terramorph: You may use a sufficiently grown nest as a secondary body the “Terramorph” form. This form automatically deactivates once all energy is consumed.
*Warning: While using this trait, the main body is rendered completely immobile.｣
The trait I’d just obtained was… subtly different from what I had expected.
‘I thought it’d be some kind of support trait for the nest…’
From the description, it could be a trait to strengthen the nest… or it might be closer to Hydra Fission, creating copies of myself. Or maybe it was a mix of both.
‘Guess I should try it directly.’
Judging by the explanation, there didn’t seem to be any re-use cooldown risks like traits such as Symbol of Hunt. As long as I had a nest and energy, using it itself shouldn’t be a problem.
‘Alright, let’s see then.’
I had just built a nest anyway, so this was the perfect chance to test it.
‘I’ll probably have to use it while linked, right?’
I pressed the sub-organ under my jaw against the nest. Familiar sensations spread, my senses fanning out through the black mucus.
Link with the nest complete. I immediately activated Terramorph.
｢Nest is not sufficiently grown.｣
‘Huh?’
An unexpected alert. Instead of activating, the trait failed.
‘You’re kidding me?’
This nest had been around for over three hours, grown large enough to swallow a tenth of the giant farmland. I hadn’t expected failure at all.
Thinking the location might be the issue, I tried again elsewhere same result.
‘So only almost fully matured nests work, huh.’
An Amorph’s nest expands rapidly for three to four days, then slows. I can shorten the time to peak growth, but I’ll still need to wait at least a full day.
‘Tch.’
I had thought the risk was low, but of course there’s a catch. I’ll need more time to verify the trait.
‘For now, I’ll just focus on building the nest.’
Just as I was about to spew more mucus, I sensed someone entering the nest vibrations, as if dozens of people were walking in unison. It was Isabel, the mutant Screamer shaped like a snake and centipede.
“Amorph.”
[ZZZ ZZZ ZZZ ZZ (What is it? Do you need food?)]
She shook her head at my question.
“I have something important to tell you.”
[ZZZ ZZ (What is it? Tell me)]
“First, promise me one thing.”
[ZZZ (A promise?)]
“No matter what happens, protect my sister. Like you do for Number 26 and Adhai.”
Her face of beautiful sculpted metal was expressionless. Even the blue eyes, the only thing that remained from when she was alive looked the same as always.
The difference was… this time I could feel emotion. Faint, but seeping up from beneath her hard, metallic skin.
[ZZZ ZZ ZZZZ (Why are you asking me this?)]
“Just answer me, can you promise or not?”
She pressed me for an answer, looking genuinely uneasy.
Since becoming a mutant Screamer, she had never shown herself like this. I knew I had to consider my words carefully.
“Be honest with me.”
After a brief pause, I spoke in a human voice.
“PS-111 is worth protecting at any cost. But… not as much as those two.”
“…You mean….”
“Number 26 and Adhai are special to me. If I absolutely had to sacrifice one of the three, I’d choose your sister.”
“……”
“Of course, that’s not going to happen. I’ll make sure of it. I'll intervene before it even comes to that. As long as I’m alive, I’ll protect her. That’s my promise.”
Isabel fell silent at that.
I knew it wasn’t the answer she wanted. But she didn’t want me to lie either and so I told her the truth.
“…As I thought. Alright.”
It was a long while before she spoke again.
“Then… pretend I said nothing important.”
“Alright.”
“…Huh?”
She looked like she’d expected me to be angry, but instead I was… grateful.
“You’re still telling me your sister’s next after those two, right? Important enough for you to resolve to protect her.”
“That’s right.”
“That’s good enough for me.”
“I thought you’d dislike me for ‘playing favorites.’”
“I understand how you feel.”
The short reply carried a lot of weight.
“Anyway… since you’ve humored me, I’ll tell you what I came to say.”
‘What on earth is she about to say that makes her so cautious?’
I fixed my attention on her lips.
“It’s about Beomho, the leader of the returners. More precisely… a clue about his perk.”
“…What?”
The Seventh’s perk? The words came out of nowhere, and I was caught off guard.
“Before, when I asked you about him, you said you didn’t know that you couldn’t find out without seeing him in person.”
“I never have seen him directly. Whenever he needed to meet me or Alshas, he always sent a proxy.”
Thanks to her perk, All-Seeing Eyes, Isabel could check a target’s information. The catch was that she had to see them with her own two eyes for it to work.
“So… there was something about the proxy?”
“Yeah. Their text box wasn’t like a normal person’s. In all my time, I’ve only seen something that strange three times.”
It’s not like traits or equipment that hide information are unheard of but as far as I know, there aren’t any that can replace the text outright.
“What was different about it?”
“The proxy I met wasn’t a Ranker… but they had two names. Above their real name, there was another written ‘Shin Beomho.’”
“…Two names overlapping?”
“Mm. The real name was translucent, faint enough it was barely visible, while the name Beomho was bold and clear.”
An overwritten name, huh. Definitely unusual.
“And aside from that?”
“All other fields besides the name were faded out… replaced with a single word: ‘Dominated.’”
“Overwritten names, a ‘domination’ message… sounds a lot like some kind of mind control ability.”
At my guess, she gave a small nod.
“Probably. When the name goes completely transparent, that person has fallen entirely under Beomho’s control.”
“You make it sound like you’ve seen that happen firsthand.”
“There was a human in Water Fortress who was in the middle of that process. Someone you know, actually.”
“…That I know?”
“Si-Hyun Yujin. A clone of hers stayed briefly at the hotel where I worked.”
The sudden mention of that familiar name made me flinch slightly.
Thinking about it, it wasn’t impossible after all, I’d fought Si-Hyun Yujin back on Verzan-02.
Still, of all places, I hadn’t expected her to show up at Water Fortress… let alone in the hotel Isabel worked at.
“Yujin’s text box also had two overlapping names but hers was much clearer. And the rest of her stats were untouched, with no ‘Dominated’ tag.”
“…So he was trying to make her his next proxy?”
Yujin’s combat sense ranked among the top even among Megacorp's players. She’d make an appealing pawn for Beomho.
‘That strange weapon of hers… must have come from him, too.’
A weapon capable of destroying the essence of a specific species I’d wondered where she’d gotten it. Looks like the answer’s Beomho.
“So… how do you think the perk works?”
“It seemed linked to sleep or dreams. Every time they woke up, their condition worsened.”
“No strange equipment or supernatural phenomena?”
“Nothing like that.”
If Isabel hadn’t seen anything like that, it meant he wasn’t relying on weapons, energy tools, or other external aids to seize control of someone’s mind.
‘I’ll have to keep digging into this…’
Even from what Isabel had just told me, Beomho’s perk sounded extremely dangerous.
Chances were high I’d end up fighting him at some point.
Once I took care of Akira Yujin, I’d have to start tracing leads on him.
“That’s as far as my intel goes.”
That was Isabel's entire piece. And from what she’d told me, I could understand why she’d been so hesitant at first.
“Yeah… definitely important information. But…”
There was still one thing bothering me.
“…why bring it up only now?”
We’d traveled together for quite some time, sharing all sorts of stories. And we had talked about the Returners before, especially Beomho.
But she had never once told me anything like this until today.
‘So… she’d been deceiving me all this time.’
Not for a day or two, but for quite a long while.
“When I was still a Coldblood, there was a restriction on me I couldn’t reveal anything about Beomho’s proxies.”
“And after that? Once you became a Screamer, you could’ve told me.”
“I originally planned to tell you back in Nox. I thought it’d be the perfect time, since you’d mentioned meeting Si-Hyun Yujin. But the timing just never lined up… and here we are.”
She spoke in a calm voice, as though she’d already anticipated my question.
But she still hadn’t answered the most important part.
“You’re still avoiding the real question: why hide it at all?”
As I spoke, I slowly raised one of my tentacle-arms.
If Isabel had deceived me for some ulterior motive… then she was no longer an ally.
I wouldn’t necessarily kill her here and now but I would subdue her on the spot.
“To be honest, I needed certainty.”
“Certainty?”
My sharp claws reflected in her blue eyes.
Even under that threat, neither her gaze nor her voice wavered.
“You overwhelmed Vortex-One, that infamous demon of the cosmos. There aren’t many single lifeforms in this universe stronger than you. And…”
Her words paused, and she turned her head toward the factory.
“…There are also those who truly follow you. Adhai and Number 26. The Gallagons who follow them. The Metallic Gremlin packs. The Wolves. If you gave the order, they would all stand by you.”
“…And your point is?”
Her bright blue eyes turned back to meet mine.
“Your strength already rivals that of the Returners and the Dominion Faction. If you grow further, no one will be able to touch you. Not even those under your protection like my sister.”
“That sounds like you’re saying you’ll cozy up to me because I’m now strong enough.”
“That’s exactly right. I’m ready to invest everything I have into you.”
She lowered herself almost bowing in deference.
“If you want, I’ll even hand over my perk to you.”
For a Ranker, there’s only one way to pass on a perk: dying to another Ranker.
In other words, she was saying I could consume her if I wished.
I looked down at Isabel without a word.
Honestly, it disgusted me.
If she were anyone else, I would have killed her immediately.
Even now, a faint urge to crush that small, delicate head was creeping up from the back of my mind.
And yet I didn’t.
Because I understood why she had deceived me.
Her twin sister’s safety.
She was willing to stake her life for that.
Family, huh…
I have no siblings.
Even before I came to this world, I’d been estranged from my parents and our relationship long soured.
Living a severed, solitary life… I couldn’t truly understand Isabel’s devotion.
But… even I have beings I hold dear here.
‘Maybe that’s why I could understand… at least a little.’
And besides…
I’d made a promise to PS-111 before to help it recover its memories from its human days.
And the Screamer before me… is the one who occupies the largest space in those memories.
“You’re saying you’ll give me everything?”
Seeing my claws draw closer, Isabel quietly closed her eyes.
My tentacled fingers stopped just short of seizing her beautiful face.
Instead, I moved a single finger.
The tip of my claw touched her metallic skin and sparks danced in the air.
“…Then I guess that’s not much different from how things already are.”
I left only a tiny scar on her forehead and withdrew my tentacle.
Killing Isabel here would bring me far more loss than gain.
I could even lose PS-111 in the process.
And now… she’d never be able to deceive me again.
Because there is no one else here who can protect her sister like I can.
“Whew…”
Realizing that my anger had subsided, Isabel let out a deep sigh.
Her hardened torso and arms loosened, the tension melting away.
“…Thank you.”
“Don’t thank me. I plan to wring every bit of use out of you from here on.”
Beomho was the kind of man who even sent proxies to his own faction members.
He’d be hiding somewhere far out of reach.
Even Isabel would have to work hard to track him down.
After I deal with Akira, I’ll make sure PS-111 helps me follow Beomho’s trail.
The best place to start will be Yujin… and his proxy.
Especially Yujin, she had people under her command, which would make finding her far easier.
I was about to wrap up the conversation there when a thought suddenly struck me.
“Come to think of it… you mentioned you’ve only seen three people with that kind of strange text box, right? The proxy, Si-Hyun Yujin… and who’s the third?”
Isabel tilted her head.
“Why, you, of course.”
“…What?”
She replied as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.
“You’re the only Ranker I’ve ever seen who can hide their own name.”
Her words were nothing like I’d expected.
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[Translator – Seraph]
[Proofreader – Draxx]
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