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HEL SCANS
[Translator – Jjescus]
[Proofreader – Demon God]
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Chapter 50
I thought I might have seen it wrong, but the transparent text box shimmering in the air didn’t disappear.
‘It’s real. It’s a bit different from what I was thinking.’
I wanted a trait that would enhance my teeth, but ‘Carnivorous Power’ doesn’t seem to be a problem. Amorph’s carnivorous power isn’t particularly weak. After all, it can easily chew through human skulls, making it superior compared to Earth’s animals.
However, in a world of space survival filled with highly protective armor and equipment, that level of biting strength isn’t anything special.
‘Amorph’s mouth structure is closer to a mix of snakes and common animals.’
The way it opens its mouth wide to firmly grasp its prey is snake-like, but the subsequent careful chewing is similar to that of typical carnivorous animals.
‘If I gain the ‘Carnivorous Power’ trait, it can become a weapon in itself.’
In the game, ‘Carnivorous Power’ was considered a decent trait. It wasn’t necessary, but it was a useful attribute, like the claws of a predator.
To use the Transcendence System, I needed to have a total of 13 physical-related traits. Currently, I was lacking in each of those traits, so having this one was much better than having none.
‘With ‘Carnivorous Power,’ I’ll have a total of 12. I just need one more to go.’
I accepted it, and my head started to change. My jaw slightly ached, and then the sound of bones colliding followed as my size increased. My head grew larger accordingly. As my head and jaw grew, the auxiliary system underneath my jaw also became longer and thicker.
The change wasn’t just about size; my teeth seemed to tingle, and the structure of my teeth was slightly different from before.
It wasn’t a significant mutation, so it didn’t take long to complete. After the mutation, I examined my face reflected in the reinforced glass of the subway.
Overall, my head had become larger, giving a slightly different impression. My previous head felt pointed, like a lizard, whereas now it felt thicker and more robust, like an anaconda.
And my teeth had changed as well, making them longer in the part of my teeth that corresponded to human canines. If they grew a bit more, you could even call them fangs.
‘They looked cute in the game…’
Was it because it was reality? I now had a much more intimidating appearance.
Not only did it look scary, but thanks to the ‘Carnivorous Power,’ I should be able to chew through the alloy inside the spaceship without any problems.
‘I’d like to test it, but…’
It’s a shame, but it’s time to get off. We’ll arrive at the next station in a few minutes, so I need to prepare to disembark. I picked up the bag that the journalist had dropped.
‘So, how am I going to get out?’
As William had mentioned, the train was the last one for now. Even if we reached the next station, the chances of finding people there were low, but there was one problem.
‘The man from the platform earlier.’
When the train was departing, judging by his demeanor, it was highly likely that he had reported me.
Back when I was on the platform, I had already activated my camouflage mechanism, so he probably saw me as a police officer rather than a monster. Not being seen as a monster was fortunate, but the issue was that he saw me crawling from the tracks to the platform.
‘I should open the door on the opposite side of the platform.’
A few moments later, a broadcast announced that we would be arriving at the station soon. I crossed over the car and moved to a car as far away from the platform as possible.
The moving train gradually slowed down, and the sharp sound of friction between the wheels and the tracks echoed.
‘Just as I expected.’
With my body crouched down, I looked out the window. In the distance, subway security personnel were waiting for the train. I grabbed the door on the opposite side of the platform with my combat arms. Thanks to Amorph’s robust strength, the door opened easily.
Before arriving at the platform, I jumped out of the slowly moving train. It might be different if I was running at full speed, but I could easily endure this level of impact.
Landing safely on the tracks without any special equipment, I moved quickly before they could board the train.
“What’s going on? Hey, this door is open!”
“What are you talking about?”
Ignoring the startled security personnel’s voices, I crawled into the darkness of the tracks.
***
When I returned to the nest, Number 26 and Adhai were awake. Number 26 was playing with spores, and Adhai was grooming its wings with its tentacles.
Number 26, who saw me, greeted me by emitting light from its body.
｢You’re back?｣
[ZZZ(Yes)]
｢Big Baby, something’s different.｣
Number 26, who noticed the change in me, approached me. It seemed intrigued, extending its tentacles to gently touch my face.
｢Big baby grew really fast!｣
[ZZZ ZZZ ZZZ ZZ ZZZZ ZZZZZ (I’m in the midst of growing).]
｢Impressive.｣
Adhai, too, appeared to have developed curiosity and came closer to me.
｢Adult｣, ｢Changed｣.
[ZZ ZZZ (That’s right)]
｢Mouth｣ ｢Tentacles｣ ｢Cool｣ ｢Features｣ ｢Great young one!｣.
Adhai seemed particularly pleased with my enhanced auxiliary system, which had grown thicker compared to before. It sent out a wave of praise, then lowered its body.
‘Gallagon seems to like the shape of my tentacles, even though it’s not in the settings.’
Gallagon is an NPC creature, and being rare, not much is known about its ecology. I’m well-informed about its weaknesses and what to be cautious of, but I don’t know much about their ecology.
‘Still, it’s nice to be appreciated from that side.’
Unlike Number 26, Adhai is in a contractual relationship with me. So, if he takes a liking to me, that’s a good thing.
｢Big baby, since you’re still young, eat a lot and grow quickly.｣
[ZZ ZZZZ (Yes, thanks)]
｢I want to grow quickly too.｣
The little one who was perched on my shoulder suddenly seemed a bit down. It seemed like I was growing quickly, but it wasn’t able to, which was probably bothering it.
‘Hmm.’
When thinking about the future, it was important to accelerate Number 26’s growth.
Last time, when I was fighting with the androids in the apartment, I realized that even with all my abilities, there were limitations to fighting alone. Maybe if I had all the traits, it would be different, but in my current situation, hunting enemies at ease wasn’t easy.
If those two hadn’t been there last time, I would have had a much harder time. Without luck, I might have been defeated while fighting alone.
‘In the game, it’s fine to die, but it’s not reality.’
In reality, suffering a fatal injury is much more disadvantageous compared to games. In games, you simply respawn after dying, but in reality, it’s not that simple. Fatal injuries increase the likelihood of defeat, and defeat ultimately leads to death.
‘To avoid that, I need to pay more attention to Number 26’s growth.’
However, not being able to know the growth conditions and process of the sea demon is undoubtedly a problem. Sea demons are not as rare as Gallagons, but they are not creatures that players can easily study, so their ecology is not well-known.
‘Still, I can make educated guesses.’
Sea demons are creatures that exist only in the deep sea of the ocean planet. By selecting creatures with similar characteristics to those that inhabit the deep sea and feeding them to Number 26, it might be possible to make it grow quickly.
So far, I have mainly provided them with creatures that I don’t need, but I might need to change my approach slightly. I mean, providing creatures that don’t help me much but can be helpful to Number 26. Fortunately, there are still a few creatures in the smuggling list that meet these criteria.
[ZZZ ZZZZ ZZZZZ (If you eat a lot, you’ll grow quickly.)]
｢Really?｣
[ZZ ZZZZZZ ZZ ZZZ (Yeah. Let’s try it.)]
｢Yeah!｣
｢I’m hungry too.｣
[ZZZ (You too)]
It seems like I’ll have to call William again.
***
E-District Apartments in the Residential Zone.
A man was spending his time watching Virtual TV. Like most of the people living in this residential zone, he seemed to be immersed in the stimulating virtual reality with a carefree expression.
At that moment, a communication device next to the man chimed softly. The man’s hazy gaze instantly sharpened.
“…”
The man turned off the virtual TV and checked the communication device. A short message was displayed on the small screen.
[Operation ready.]
“Finally, it’s here,” muttered the man, Jade Russell.
A year ago, Jade Russell received a specific order from Si-Hyun Yujin. The order was to secretly smuggle a Gallagon disguised as a Fairy Wing into the space city before the Council’s announcement. Jade was also tasked with infiltrating along with it.
Although it hadn’t been officially announced by the Council, Si-Hyun Yujin was known as Akira Yujin’s shadow. Obtaining crucial information related to Noble Capital was not a difficult task for him.
The reason for disguising the Gallagon as a Fairywing was partly because their appearances were somewhat similar, but mostly because smuggling with Fairywings was almost nonexistent. Si-Hyun and Jade both knew that smuggling often occurred in the Special Trade Zone, so this was a precaution to prevent any potential smuggling attempts.
After completing all the preparations, Jade pretended to smuggle the Gallagon disguised as a Fairy Wing at the Special Trade Zone. He intentionally got caught by the Smuggling Animal Control Team. Once the Gallagon was handed over to the team, the first objective was accomplished, and he managed to escape secretly from the detention center.
“It’s time to put this ability to good use again.”
Jade looked down at the communication device in his hand. Suddenly, the battery ran out, and the body of the communication device slowly disintegrated, being absorbed into the palm of his hand.
A few minutes later, the communication device had completely vanished, leaving only some metal dust and a set of sharp teeth on his palm.
The Russell family consisted of individuals raised directly by the Yujin family, or more precisely, Si-hyun Yujin. Si-hyun gave each individual in the Russell family specific roles and provided them with what they needed according to those roles.
For example, Arnold Russell received a valuable weapon, a plasma pistol, suitable for his role, while Jade Russell received the genes of a rare and hard-to-acquire creature.
The original source of his genetic material was a Metallic Gremlin, a notorious creature known as a predator on spaceships. Metallic Gremlins were about 30-80 cm in size and resembled hairless primates. The key difference was that their skin was entirely metallic in color, they had no eyes on their faces, and they had a large, circular mouth that could cover half of their face.
The grotesque appearance of the Metallic Gremlins aside, what made them the symbol of dread for the crew were their habits. These creatures gathered in swarms, floated through space, and sought out their prey. And the prey of the Metallic Gremlins was metal.
Drifting through space, when they encountered a spacecraft, they immediately clung to the outer hull and ruthlessly tore and devoured the metal with their voracious, lightning-fast mouths. Their speed was so swift that even a massive battleship, if caught by a group of Metallic Gremlins, would be reduced to a mere skeleton within a day.
These formidable creatures were challenging not only due to their threat but also because of their small size, making them difficult to detect on a ship’s radar, even with advanced technology that struggled to distinguish them from space debris or small asteroids.
Furthermore, even if they were discovered early, their bodies, composed of metal, made them resilient to laser weapons. This often led to cases where a presumed-dead Gremlin would later launch another assault.
As a result, many spacecraft continued to be the prey of Metallic Gremlins, leading to the inevitable end of their operational life.
If it weren’t for the Yujin family, extracting and using the genes of these threatening creatures would have been unthinkable.
“Thanks to this ability, escaping was not difficult.”
While he was imprisoned, he used the abilities of the Metallic Gremlin to break free. After that, he received help from his comrades, underwent plastic surgery, and had been in hiding until now.
“I need to retrieve the Gallagon.”
Jade stood up from his seat. It was time to prepare for the mission his owner, Si-Hyun Yujin, had entrusted him with.
The container where Gallagon was stored was protected by a high-level encryption, but it didn’t matter. With his abilities, he could easily unlock it.
Jade took out another communication device and contacted the colleagues who had been in hiding with him. They needed to keep Gallagon in a deep freeze until Si-Hyun Yujin arrived.
“Let’s get going.”
Everything was perfect, or so he thought. That’s why he didn’t anticipate what was about to happen.
The most crucial part of his plan, the Blue Gallagon, was now roaming beneath his feet with some strange creatures.
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HEL SCANS
[Translator – Jjescus]
[Proofreader – Demon God]
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