Chapter 144
“Captain, the Cosmic Bolt has been fully charged.”
“…”
“Captain?”
Situation room of the ‘Judicator of Damocles 08.’- The imperial battleship
The crew had informed the captain that all preparations were complete, but the captain had not issued any orders. Because communication had been completely cut off from the warrior unit that had descended below.
“What’s going on? Why aren’t we getting any contact? Lice!”
Lice was a warrior he cherished. The possibility of him ignoring the captain’s orders for no reason is close to zero. Moreover, the other warrior units that went down with Lice also have not been reached.
That means something serious has happened down there.
“…What should I do?”
He can choose one of two options. One is to fire the Cosmic Bolt as it is, and the other is to send down a new search party.
However, he knew. Choosing the latter is practically impossible.
In the Cult Empire, contamination issues are not an exaggeration when it comes to the most dangerous elements to the empire’s security. Delaying time to rescue subordinates while performing purification duties to prevent contamination? Especially when the captain personally sent subordinates to rescue slaves?
The ships here are not just Imperial Motherships. The ships belonging to the Mothership Battle Group dispatched to protect the Mothership will not remain idle.
If the captain delays, he will be dismissed, and another captain will lead the ship and fire the Cosmic Bolt.
“Captain? Please give the order.”
“…Fire in 10 minutes.”
“Understood.”
In the end, the path the captain chose was to fire the Cosmic Bolt. It’s a short time, but within it, he hopes for the safe return of his subordinates.
***
｢What happened?｣
The Mother of the Sky asked me with a serious look in her eyes.
“The launch time has already passed.”
｢What? But why?｣
“I don’t know.”
The Mother of the Sky deliberately left one Cult’s corpse for me, knowing that I have many supernatural abilities. Receiving the corpse from her, I used my abilities to read the memories of the Cult who came here, Hamine.
There were many gaps in the middle of the memories, but I could confirm only important facts.
The planet was designated as a contaminated planet and received a purification order.
And five minutes ago, it was the time for the Cosmic Bolt to be launched, that’s the two things.
Why it hasn’t been launched yet, even Hamine and I don’t know.
It’s fortunate that the launch has been delayed, but we still can’t relax.
｢…Damn, it won’t be long now.｣
The Mother of the Sky frowned and clicked her tongue.
As she said, it’s true. The purification order of the Cult is rarely canceled. Even if the captain of the Imperial Mothership loses interest and refuses the mission, a substitute will come forward to execute it.
In a short time, within an hour at most, the Cosmic Bolt will fall onto this continent.
‘It’s too late to escape.’
The Cosmic Bolt is a condensed energy projectile created by mixing dark matter and psychic power. Its instantaneous firepower is almost comparable to the sun, so when it falls onto a planet, the entire atmosphere and water evaporate.
Even if you hide underground, avoiding the Cosmic Bolt that affects up to tens of kilometers below the surface is almost impossible. I might survive somehow, but No. 26, Adhai, and the Mother of the Sky cannot escape death.
“Not even spaceships will help.”
The research base brought by humans is far away from here. Even if my body has been strengthened, reaching there within a few minutes to an hour is impossible. Even if, by some incredible stroke of luck, the Cosmic Bolt is launched several hours later, it’s still a problem. As soon as we leave the planet in a spacecraft, the fleet escorting the Imperial Mothership will intercept us.
｢So, we stop them here.｣
If avoiding it is impossible, we have no choice but to defend against the attacks of that Imperial Mothership. The first thing that comes to my mind is the ability derived from the ‘Plunderer’s Irregular Polyhedron.’ The Irregular Polyhedron of the Plunderer allows the conversion of equipment into abilities.
I utilized that ability to devour the ‘Brain God,’ the cult’s orbital bombardment weapon, gaining its destructive power.
‘No, with just that ability, I can’t defeat the Cosmic Bolt.’
The newly acquired ability falls slightly short in output compared to the Brain God. When I consumed the plasma launcher, my body’s output surpassed the original, but it was the opposite with the Brain God. Even at its original state, the Brain God’s output was far below that of the Cosmic Bolt. Taking it with decreased power won’t make much difference; I can only buy a few minutes at best.
‘Still, it’s the most powerful weapon I have.’
So, I have to find a way to increase the output somehow.
‘If it’s the Symbol of Hunt, I could dramatically increase the output, but…’
Originally, the cooldown for the Symbol of Hunt was 24 hours. Even after breaking through Transcendence Level 2, the cooldown for the Symbol of Hunt remained the same.
‘Damn! They treated it like something I used during my evolution!’
Seeing that the remaining time for the Symbol of Hunt is 18 hours, it’s clear. Similarly, the cooldown for the Horizon of Nightmares still displayed 7 days. Though they are now separate cooldowns due to the removal of the restriction, both are unusable in the current situation.
‘Frustrating’
My trump card, the Symbol of Hunt, is unusable.
‘…New message. I hadn’t checked it yet.’
Desperate for any solution, I checked the new message that had just arrived.
[Unlocking the Transcendence Level 2 reward: New trait ‘Organic Evolution (Unique)’ is provided!]
[Unlocking the new type ‘Space Monster (Unique).’]
[Unlocking the new system ‘Trait Enhancement.’]
‘Huh?’
I thought the Transcendence Level 2 reward would end with unlocking a new type and removing constraints on the traits I possessed, but it was not the case.
“They added related traits to the reward because I need them for unlocking the benefits.”
I read through the explanations in the text box with fascination.
[Organic Evolution: It’s not the strong who survive but the ones who endure becoming strong. You can choose one of two special states for transformation.]
[King of Monsters: Grow and enhance your body into a gigantic creature. Requires a space with a radius of over 100m. It’s a special state that consumes a tremendous amount of energy, and once the energy is depleted, the state is released. Maximum duration is 10 minutes, with a cooldown of 30 days.]
[Intelligent Weakling: Shrink your body into a small creature and preserve internal energy. The shrunken state doesn’t exceed 5m. Some ability usage is restricted, but special benefits related to the state are provided. The user can release it at will. Maximum duration is 7 days, with a cooldown of 30 days.]
[Transformation cannot be canceled or changed during the process. Both special states share a cooldown.]
[Subsequent acquisition of traits will allow obtaining new special states.]
[Note: Evolution and cycle. What awaits at the end? Perhaps, as you, you may be able to know.]
‘This…?’
Just a moment ago, I was cursing the game company, but now I couldn’t bring myself to do so.
‘Organic Evolution. This could be useful.’
I may not know exactly how to trigger the transformation, but it seems beneficial for overcoming this predicament.
Right, the special state known as the ‘King of Monsters.’ According to the description, it enhances and grows the body.
“With this, I should be able to increase the output.”
In a situation where I can’t use the Symbol of Hunt, having a similar card in hand was a welcome development. However, there was still uncertainty.
‘The key is how much this trait can enhance.’
Looking at the cooldown and restrictions, it reminded me of the Symbol of Hunt and Horizon of Nightmares. Given the limitations, one can easily infer that the effect of this trait is quite powerful.
‘Still, gambling is not a good idea.’
A wrong move here could lead to our total annihilation. To stop the Cosmic Bolt, we need to pull in everything possible.
‘Output, output, I need to find a way to increase it…’
The remaining time until launch is uncertain. Even using this trait will require time. I can’t keep pondering indefinitely.
‘…Let’s think for just one more minute.’
I desperately racked my brain to find any possible solutions.
｢Little one, are you in a lot of pain?｣
｢Pain.｣ ｢yes｣
｢Want to play with a toy?｣
｢Okay.｣
In my eyes, I saw the figures of Number 26 and Adhai. Number 26 had brought a loot bag and was taking items out one by one in front of Adhai.
It felt like the black light of the Cosmic Bolt could fall upon us at any moment. If hit by the firepower of the Cosmic Bolt, they would all burn without feeling a thing.
While watching them, one minute passed. No new ideas emerged.
‘I have no choice but to go with this… Huh? Wait a moment.’
Seeing the bag Number 26 was holding, a crucial fact suddenly crossed my mind. The bag contained equipment and items I obtained by killing Muriel, including the High Priest\s Golden Spear, the Blood Raver, and her potions.
Among them was the potion she had used. I hurriedly approached 26.
｢What’s wrong?｣
[ZZZ ZZZZZ ZZZ ZZZ (Can you lend me the bag for a moment?)]
｢Does the big one need a toy too?｣
[ZZZ (Yes)]
After receiving the bag, I took out a small kit from inside. When I opened it, there was a violet-glowing vial.
‘Great! There’s still one left!’
This potion is called Salonium. It temporarily boosts the condition of the drinker by one level. If I drink Salonium, I can instantly transform into a Saint.
Becoming an Saint has two tremendous benefits. First, the power becomes significantly stronger, reaching a level where I can confront the Cosmic Bolt. Second, my head grows to three.
‘In reality, the increase in the number of heads is not necessarily a good thing.’
Originally, the increase in heads is meant to enhance the utility of the jaws of the Essence Harvester. With three heads, collecting the heads of enemies becomes easier.
In reality, due to the presence of corrosive tentacles, the significance of this increase has diminished.
But at this moment, having an increased number of heads is crucial.
The name of the trait I created by devouring the Brain God is ‘Divine Spectre.’
It’s the ability to shoot out condensed energy lines of the Brain God’s lightning.
If you ask where it is fired, it’s directly from the mouth. Just like when I absorbed the plasma launcher and shot plasma energy lines, they only come out from my mouth. It doesn’t fire from the corrosive tentacles or any other part.
‘In other words, if I become a monster with three heads…’
It means I can unleash energy lines equivalent to the Brain God from three heads simultaneously.
A monster, no…King of Monsters with three heads, and the trait obtained by devouring the Brain God.
‘With this, I can do it!’
With these three, I can stop the Cult’s ultimate weapon for purifying the planet, the Cosmic Bolt.
