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[Translator – Seraph]
[Proofreader – Draxx]
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When entering the Symbol of the Hunt state, vision disappears but in return, the performance of other sensory organs increases dramatically.
In the case of the Amorph, which has neither a nose nor ears, the auxiliary organs shaped like tentacles beneath its jaw become especially enhanced.
Thanks to that, even without eyesight, I can precisely perceive the opponent's form and sense flows of energy invisible to the eye.
The Outspacer confirmed through my auxiliary organs was a creature I had never seen before.
‘Looks like a modified queen.’
Even back during the fight on Verzan-02, the queens commanded by the Fourth didn’t resemble any it was familiar with. Because of that, it was hard to tell what kind of genetic essence had been used to create them.
‘Or maybe it’s due to the special privileges that thing holds.’
Whatever the case, it was clear that this special entity had cut off its retreat.
Surrounding the creature were three flying beasts, each 20 meters long. Most likely, their role was to escort this unidentified Outspacer.
Isabel, who had been observing the enemy using the All-Seeing Eye, sent a psychic wave.
｢Identified, special... traits. Flying... beasts... absorb energy.｣
[ZZZ ZZ ZZ (What about the one in the center?)]
｢Navigation... energy... disruption. Range... extremely wide. Also... energy detection... high-speed... faster-than-light... capable... yes.｣
[ZZ (High-speed?)]
｢Almost... like a warp-boy... level.｣
Hearing that, I could guess what these four Outspacers had been assembled for.
A countermeasure to the Psychic Breath and the Black Devourer Cannon.
The flying beasts with energy absorption abilities were there to neutralize the Psychic Breath, while the strange central entity was likely built to evade the Black Devourer Cannon.
‘They can’t block the cannon, so they plan to dodge it entirely.’
If I showed any sign of preparing to fire, they’d probably immediately disable the Faster than light inhibitors and flee.
At that moment, two small projectiles shot out from between clustered ships. The Shadows fired first, triggering a wave of enemy attacks.
‘At least now I know what kind of power they’re using.’
And how to fight them.
Responding to the enemy's offensive, I began to move.
The Megacorp ships opened fire not only with their main cannons mounted at the front, but also with auxiliary turrets on the sides. Star Union vessels unleashed a flurry of guided torpedoes from the countless turrets embedded in their hulls.
Because of the short distance, the enemy’s attacks came without pause. Its carapace, struck by plasma beams and torpedoes, kept cycling between damage and regeneration.
With its size, dodging was nearly impossible; the field of fire was too dense. PS-111 and Isabel were busy enough just dealing with the enemy's jamming rounds.
From here, it would have to trust its auxiliary organs. Covered in bony blades, they whipped around furiously, gathering data.
As it closed the distance to the enemy fleet, it deployed its invasive tentacles all at once, lashing them toward a nearby ship. The battleship tried to retreat too late; a massive vessel over twice its own size was already caught in its grasp.
A jamming round from the Giant Gun tore through space but struck the ship’s outer hull instead of the Amorph. Other enemy attacks were likewise intercepted by the captured vessel. The enemies showed no hesitation, even when their ally had been caught.
‘Their loss, not mine.’
Using the battleship as a shield, it bit into the ship’s outer wall. Each time it digested the alloy plating, the Destructive Beast Carapace effect activated across its entire body. Damaged parts were healed, and its body size grew ever so slightly.
The trapped vessel, meanwhile, was reduced to shreds in moments. Crew in space suits struggled pointlessly. Whether swallowed along with the debris or obliterated by PS-111’s precision fire, the outcome was the same.
｢Predation effect activated!｣
Thanks to that, it acquired several traits found in humans such as Dexterous Hands and Jaw Strength. The former was immediately fused with Signal Jamming to create Hijacking.
‘Just what I needed.’
With that ship quickly destroyed, it rushed toward the rest of the fleet. The once-clustered ships rapidly scattered to avoid it.
A swift reaction but the situation had already shifted.
Just as a torpedo locked on and prepared to strike, it used Hijacking. Controlling the guidance chip inside the torpedo, it redirected it to a fleeing Star Union battleship.
The engines at the rear exploded, drastically reducing the ship's speed. Dozens of turrets along its hull opened fire in a frenzy, but it changed nothing. Just like before, it grabbed the damaged vessel and used it as a shield.
‘The preparations are all set.’
To break the cards the Fourth prepared, a few things are necessary. One of them is the large cover it currently holds.
‘Next…’
Hidden behind the ship, it prepared to land a heavy blow on the enemy. It poured all its focus into making sure there were no mistakes or delays, readying itself for the perfect timing.
｢Dangerous, but effective. I will help.｣
｢Sister, 8 o’clock direction, front.｣
Isabel and PS-111 moved swiftly to block the Giant Gun’s projectiles, torpedoes, and the swarm of collector bugs trying to sneak up behind it.
In the meantime, it completed its final preparations and deployed its last weapon: the Black Devourer Cannon.
Energy surged through its entire body, gathering in the left tail. Its form shook as if it were caught on a stormy sea.
No, it wasn’t just its body shaking. The faint light that existed in the void of space began to refract, and the very fabric of space seemed to tremble.
The enemies detected this anomaly and reacted quickly, closing the gap between their ships. They were enveloped in a blue light. In the center of this, the Outspacers created by the Fourth to deal with it appeared.
The energy, which had been flowing subtly, grew so intense that even from a distance, it became easily detectable. The Outspacers was attempting to break free of its control and engage in Faster than light travel with its fleet.
Just as the Outspacers and its fleet began to vanish, a black shell was fired from its tail.
There was no explosion, no screams of life fading away, nothing from the battlefield could be felt.
What the auxiliary organs detected was nothing but complete stillness.
After a moment, energy began to concentrate in a far-off space. It used the Star Coordinates on the 'item' it had prepared earlier before the enemies appeared.
Soon, the enemies that had crossed space made their appearance. Among them were the Outspacerss.
The damage to the enemies wasn’t great. Judging by the number of remaining ships, around 10-20% had been devoured by the Reaper’s Maw
‘It doesn’t matter.’
It wasn’t the enemy fleet it had targeted.
As it distanced itself from the fleet, the swarm of collector bugs and Outspacers moved to ambush it once again.
Using Star Coordinates meant no actions could be taken for at least a minute. From the enemy’s perspective, such an opportunity would be hard to pass up.
However, they suddenly froze. The collector bugs, who had been trying to tear it apart, stood still, their bodies rigid. It was as if something had gone wrong in their minds.
“Of course.”
Outspacers' subordinates follow the commands of their higher-ups. If something happens to the higher entity, the subordinates are affected as well.
And right now, the highest-ranking entity in command was facing a major problem.
｢Success.｣
Isabel confirmed the status of the enemy and spoke to me.
The item it had just teleported was one of the Star Union wreckages it had been using as cover.
‘To be precise, it was wreckage coated in Abyssal Hue and wrapped in a psychic bubble.’
The Black Devourer Cannon had been a decoy.
I had expected the enemy to dodge, so while consuming the ship, I secretly prepared the enhanced psychic breath laced alloy fragments. This Abyssal Hue was used because it did not activate on inanimate objects.
I held the bubble-coated fragments, waiting for the enemy to move, and then used the Star Coordinates to align with the perfect moment. The enemy, who had briefly halted the Faster than light controls to escape, was caught by the weapon it had launched.
‘No matter how much the Fourth analyzed me…’
No one can understand its traits better than it does.
The collector bugs, which had been surrounding it, began to retreat. With their commander lost, they no longer moved systematically.
The Megacorp and Star Union warships abandoned the fleeing Outspacers swarm and approached it. Realizing it had lost the means for rapid movement, they decided that keeping their distance would put them at a disadvantage against the Black Devourer Cannon.
‘They’re determined to end it here.’
Its body was currently paralyzed by the penalty of Star Coordinates, leaving it unable to move for a full minute. Hundreds of ships continued to advance, bombarding it without pause.
Among them were the Shadows. Shadows wielding Giant Guns maneuvered to get into position to attack. Isabel and PS-111 were relentlessly providing suppressive fire, but the two Shadows skillfully evade their attacks.
As they dodged around, just as they were about to fire the Giant Guns, a massive object quickly approached from behind.
The ‘Right Head’, who had been fighting the Outspacers, had succeeded in killing a 40-meter Outspacers. Blood was splattered across its mouth. Covered in blood, the Amorph passed by it and leapt into the enemy fleet.
The Mother of the Sky, who had been fighting alongside the clone, was no longer there. Her target had never been the ships.
One of the Shadows, aiming to snipe it, froze mid-motion. A primitive blade had stabbed out of its abdomen.
The Mother of the Sky, who had stealthily approached, had thrust her Priestess's Golden Spear into it. She then lifted the spear, tearing through the creature.
The other Shadow, witnessing its comrade being cleaved in half, immediately halted its aim and tried to flee.
‘Where do you think you’re going?’
｢I won’t let you get away.｣
It couldn’t allow the persistent enemy to escape. As if sensing this, PS-111 swung a Gallagon clawed blade arm.
A psychic wave blasted out from the long blade, striking the fleeing enemy. The next moment, the creature was torn apart, its waist opening up, and hot liquid gushing from the wound.
｢This time, no mistake.｣
[ZZ ZZZZ (Good. Well done.)]
Just as the penalty ended, it tossed the debris of the ship it had used for cover and approached the wounded enemy. The Shadow, whose waist had been cut in two, activated its shield to protect itself, but its attempts were futile. The Devouring Tentacle was faster.
The mouth at the end of the tentacle split and swallowed the entire body of the creature.
｢Consumption effect activated! 'Ultra Control' genetic essence acquired successfully.｣
｢'Code Black' biological trait 'Ultra Control' stolen.｣
The newly acquired trait from the Shadow or rather, the newly appointed Code Black was absorbed into its body.
‘Ultra Control! That’s great…’
It had just acquired a trait useful for transcendence materials. As it was about to rejoice, liquid began to spill from its mouth.
The moment it realized the liquid wasn’t from the Shadow, but from its own body, intense pain shot through its chest.
｢What’s wrong?｣
｢Eh, Amorph?｣
PS-111 and Isabel sent psychic waves, sensing my distress, but I couldn’t respond.
The pain in my chest was the least of my concerns.
The damage to my shell from the thermal beam had interrupted my regeneration, and the energy consumed by the Black Devourer Cannon had not been replenished.
‘Why now… Could it be?’
I had an idea of what might be causing the anomaly.
The Shadow it had just consumed.
The Megacorp ranker had most likely implanted something into the Shadow’s body.
Realizing this, it saw a blue glow appear in the far reaches of space.
Piercing through the light were warships. Countless military vessels had joined the enemy’s ranks.
The enemy’s offensive was far from over.
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[Translator – Seraph]
[Proofreader – Draxx]
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