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[Translator – Seraph]
[Proofreader – Draxx]
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Chapter 394
The Metallic Gremlins aren’t particularly tall. Even the larger ones barely reach 80 centimeters, so most are about the size of a human child.
But don’t let their small size fool you.
These little demons with metallic skin are the bane of starships. Their nickname, ‘Predators of Space’, is no exaggeration.
They are terrors that roam the ocean called the cosmos and they advance now.
Metallic Gremlins can detect energy emissions from ships using micro-spines inside their mouths. These spines are so sensitive that even small ships far away are easily tracked. There’s no way they’d miss the fleet currently bombarding us.
In the distance, warships that looked like tiny stars began to shift. They were rearranging their formation to respond to the Gremlins.
Some of the battleships then initiated ultra-long-range bombardments.
Just before the thermal rays reached the silver clouds, the Gremlins vanished like smoke.
Moments later, Metallic Gremlins cloaked in blue light erupted near the enemy fleet. The Warp Boys had cast a large-scale teleportation. Closing the distance in an instant, the Gremlins immediately launched into close-quarters combat against the ships that were repositioning.
[ZZZZ ZZZZ (Let’s move too)]
I moved in with the others toward the enemy fleet.
Unlike earlier, there was no suppressive fire. They were too distracted trying to deal with the surprise attack from these sudden raiders.
Starving silver monsters clung to any ship they could reach. Auxiliary turrets on each ship moved nonstop, trying to shake them off. The thermal rays and energy blasts from those turrets filled the void in chaotic bursts of light.
One of the main guns turned toward me. Just as it fired a thermal ray, the ship shook violently. My clone, Right Head, born from the Hydra Split, had slammed into it.
The impact caused the ship to lurch, and the thermal ray missed me, striking another battleship behind me instead. It left a massive hole in the hull, but the ship didn’t sink.
There was no need for me to finish it off. A swarm of ravenous maws nearby would take care of the rest.
At that moment, five destroyers up ahead exploded almost simultaneously. Out of the silent fireballs came a red star and a black storm, crashing into other ships.
It was Adhai, armored in Red Armor, and the Mother of the Sky, who had taken the form of a griffon. The two fastest and most agile among us were weaving through the sky, toying with the enemy in aerial combat. They were living torpedoes, piercing through one ship after another.
The larger ships that hadn’t been completely destroyed were finished off by ‘Left Head’, my other clone, and the Metallic Gremlins.
Left Head clung to the ships, tearing apart turrets and thrusters with its sharp claws and fangs. With its weapons and propulsion systems disabled, a ship was nothing more than a large hunk of scrap metal. Well-prepared prey like that was soon swallowed by the silver demons trailing behind.
Number 26 was also on the offensive, using its unique abilities to great effect. It twisted the trajectory of incoming torpedoes using its psychic powers and crushed battleship turrets with sheer force.
While everyone else fought hard, I was busy searching for the command ship or at least one that might be carrying a ranked enemy.
A war of attrition will only drag this out.
This chaos won’t last forever. Once the enemy adapts, things will turn against us.
We have to inflict as much damage as possible and break their formation either by killing a ranked combatant or by disabling their command structure.
[ZZZ ZZ ZZZZ (Found anything?)]
｢No ranked ones… must find… a special ship.｣
｢Searching for command ship. Not… in vicinity.｣
Isabel’s special trait, All-Seeing Eye, can only read information from creatures or objects she has seen directly. It can’t identify the people aboard a ship.
So I was looking for a vessel that looked visibly different from the rest. PS-111 was assisting Isabel, scanning for ships that appeared unusually modified.
‘I need to lock onto a target before I can use the Dice of the Void.’
The ‘Dice of the Void’ lasts only three minutes. Its duration is incredibly short. I need to be sure I can use it to maximum effect before activating it.
As I continued to survey the countless ships, their formation began to shift.
Ships carrying Metallic Gremlins detached from the main fleet and pulled away. Once they got far enough, the other battleships opened fire on them. One of the ships, struck by several thermal blasts, exploded on the spot.
The other ships soon followed suit. When a Metallic Gremlin latched onto a vessel, the fleet ordered that ship to pull away, leaving it to be dealt with by the others.
‘They’re doing the same thing they used to do in the game.’
Removing a Metallic Gremlin once it's attached to a ship is extremely difficult. That’s why players managing fleets would often resort to this method accepting minor losses to eliminate the threat.
‘But doing that here… they're going to face serious backlash.’
In a game, it wouldn't matter. But this was reality. If a ranker recklessly sacrificed their subordinates, there were bound to be consequences.
‘Besides…’
Right now, the Star Union and MegaCorp were launching a joint operation just to catch it. The two factions were normally enemies. Without direct orders from high-ranking officers, they would never have worked together.
That realization sparked an idea.
A way to potentially deal a heavy blow to the enemy.
‘Let’s run a little experiment.’
I approached the clustered enemy ships.
Star Union and Megacorp vessels were mixed together, all targeting the ships with Gremlins on them. Some noticed its approach and opened fire with auxiliary cannons. I kept moving forward, absorbing the impacts of the incoming energy blasts.
And once I got close enough, I activated Messenger of Mass Confusion.
From the tentacles on my head, faint strands of psychic power unfurled deadly vapors that warped perception and drowned minds in madness. The haze seeped into the interiors of the surrounding ships.
Messenger of Mass Confusion was a unique trait specialized for mass-scale mental manipulation and crowd control. At its maximum range, it could affect sentient beings within a 500-meter radius.
‘Not exactly ideal for space combat, though.’
The enemy warships I was facing were each several hundred meters long. Even at close range, only two or three would fall within the area of effect.
But that didn’t matter.
The rest would be taken care of by the crew aboard those ships.
I pressed on, deeper into the enemy formation, keeping the Messenger of Mass Confusion active. I did not attack. Even as carrier drones latched onto me and pestered me, I ignored them all.
[ZZ ZZZZ ZZZ (Don’t attack those fighters)]
｢What?｣
｢Amorph, psychic… power detected. Are you... contaminating their minds?｣
｢Mind… contamination?｣
Isabel was the only one among them who had never seen Messenger of Mass Confusion before, and her confusion was obvious.
‘This should be enough.’
It was time to reap what I had sown. Rather than explain, I chose to demonstrate. I deactivated the Messenger of Mass Confusion and withdrew.
Moments later, ships began to act strangely. Turrets mounted on their outer hulls swiveled not toward enemies, but toward nearby allies. Most notably, they began targeting Star Union vessels.
The cyborg-manned ships had no idea what was happening. They were still focused on attacking it until the MegaCorp ships beside them suddenly opened fire.
‘Success.’
Plasma heat-rays tore into Star Union ships, one after another. As their allies fell, the cyborg crews began to show signs of agitation.
But it wasn’t just the cyborgs who were thrown into confusion. The human crews were just as disturbed.
‘Of course they are.’
Ships and fighters that had been fighting at their side just moments ago were now turning on them.
Two destroyers simultaneously rammed a battleship. The marble-white vessel was engulfed in a fiery explosion.
The ship that collided with the carrier drones sustained only superficial damage to its hull but it was likely a different story inside.
‘They’re probably panicking now that everyone’s going mad.’
Anyone affected by Messenger of Mass Confusion had a chance of developing the ‘Madness Bomb’ effect. Those who carried the bomb would descend into cannibalistic frenzy, fixated only on devouring others.
And the real danger? If you killed a Madness Bomb carrier too soon, the effect would transfer to the nearest sentient being.
‘In a confined space like a spaceship, it’ll spread instantly.’
It was only a matter of time before a living hell unfolded inside those battleships.
The Megacorp warships’ erratic behavior caused the enemy offensive to lose momentum.
The same went for the Star Union ships. The blocky, black rectangular vessels were slowly distancing themselves from the sleek, white, streamlined ships. One glance was enough to see that they were clearly wary of their allies.
As the chaos among the enemy forces intensified, Isabel perched on my back sent me a psychic wave.
｢Unusual ship spotted. Front, two o'clock.｣
The direction she pointed to revealed a white spacecraft, slightly different in form from the standard warships. Its elongated hull narrowed sharply at the front, resembling a massive sword.
‘I've seen that somewhere before…’
Despite its distinctive shape, the ship somehow felt familiar. It had a strong sense that it had encountered this vessel in the past.
｢Super-weapon... ion cannon, similar armament, equipped.｣
[ZZZZ (Ion cannon?)]
The ion cannon, a tier above plasma weapons, is often mounted as the main armament of Megacorp superweapons like the Gigacracker.
Of course, that ship was nowhere near the scale of a Gigacracker. The odds of it demonstrating the same destructive power were slim.
‘A ship with an ion cannon, huh.’
In the game, for balance reasons, ion cannons couldn’t be equipped on regular warships.
[ZZZ ZZZ (Anything else?)]
｢High-speed response warp engine… present. Faster than light travel. Other devices… also many.｣
Then, I suddenly remembered where I had seen that ship.
Back when I departed the T&C Special Trade Hub, a sudden surge in predatory instinct had triggered in the port. Unlike usual, I had witnessed a future full of noise and distortion.
‘That’s why I picked a different escape vessel.’
The ship I had avoided at the time looked remarkably similar to the one in front of me now.
｢Confirmed: target is the Yujin Family flagship, Heavenly Sword. Probability that family head is aboard exceeds 80%.｣
PS-111 drove a stake into its suspicion.
That ship carried Akira Yujin, the number three ranked individual.
‘Good.’
With the target found, there was no need for hesitation. I immediately activated the Dice of the Void.
The moment the dice were cast, I felt a small flame ignite in my chest.
What began as a flickering ember grew steadily until it engulfed its entire body in flames. This wasn’t merely a sensation; the silver markings on its chest also began spreading outward.
｢What is this?｣
｢Detected: massive energy release within the Amorph's body.｣
The Screamer sisters, startled by the changes occurring in my body.
But I knew exactly what happened when these markings covered my entire form. I had experienced it once before.
As the silvery pattern, reminiscent of the Milky Way, completely enveloped my body, a strange awareness seized its mind.
A blend of vitality, vibrance, and liberation.
While in this state, I could freely use all my traits without cooldowns or limitations.
From the vast arsenal stored within my body, I selected two traits first:
Bone Beast and Symbol of Hunt.
Normally, these two could never coexist.
But now, Gigantification and Perfection harmonized within my body.
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[Translator – Seraph]
[Proofreader – Draxx]
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Chapter 394
