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[Translator – Seraph]
[Proofreader – Draxx]
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Chapter 378
[ZZZ ZZ (Is this the one?)]
｢Grung?｣
The massive pangolin, as large as a hill, blinked its four eyes. Next to it, a griffon beastkin emitted a wave of telepathic thoughts.
｢The one brought by the wicked master. Can you check if it smells like that person?｣
｢Gwooo...｣
The gentle emotions conveyed through the telepathic waves made the massive beast slowly shake its head. Then, it lowered its head toward the much smaller human.
“…….”
Faced with a beast several times its own size, the human trembled. It knew that not even the reinforced suit it was wearing could protect it.
Then, the enormous Mountain Crawler exhaled sharply.
｢Grrrrrng.｣
｢It’s a match. This one supplied goods to Salman.｣
[ZZ (I see.)]
I had deliberately refrained from implanting parasites in the pirate, just in case the creature got confused while sniffing.
Extending my winged arms, I grabbed the pirate and lifted him off the ground. Now, it was time to pry open his head and see what was inside.
“W-Wait! Just wait a second! I’ll tell you everything you want to know!”
“Oh? Everything?”
“Yes! Every single deal I made with Client S! Everything that bastard ordered! Just please, spare me!”
Sechan, the pirate caught in my grasp, was desperate. He must have thought that if he somehow got out of here, he could still escape.
‘Too bad for him.’
The pirate ship floating in space was already being taken care of by Isabel, while the transport ship that had landed on the surface was in Adhai’s hands. Even if by some miracle he managed to get away from me, there was no way for him to flee this planet.
The moment he chose to come here, his fate was already sealed.
‘Not that I’m complaining.’
Today marked the third day since Salman’s death.
According to the ancient Mountain Crawler Salman had brought along, there were individuals who regularly visited Asuka-44. Every time they arrived, the scent of food and blood followed.
Mother of the Sky and I assumed these visitors were responsible for supplying and transporting goods. Asuka-44 was an terraformed planet, meaning everything had to be brought in from outside. Naturally, there had to be a dedicated supply crew based off-world.
But since the Mountain Crawler wasn’t human, it couldn’t provide specifics on their location or schedule.
Fortunately, that issue was resolved thanks to the remnants of Salman’s forces still lingering on the planet. The defensive fleet responsible for combat had been wiped out, but some scout ships had been away on patrol during the battle.
I scoured the planet, tracked down the survivors, and extracted the information I needed.
They revealed that the supply crew was scheduled to arrive approximately three days after Salman’s death. This was because, four days ago, the base had agreed to meet with them in exactly one week.
So, we had spent the past three days waiting on Asuka-44.
Had they failed to show up today, we would have left.
‘But things worked out nicely.’
“This is the last room. The mess hall? What the hell? Why does it sound like a kid crying in here?”
Suddenly, an unfamiliar voice echoed through the nest.
“…What?”
Sechan’s expression lit up for a brief moment. It was the voice of a person his crew, most likely.
‘How unfortunate.’
But the outcome he hoped for would never come to pass.
“Fuck, they’re all dead!”
The coarse curse was accompanied by the arrival of a figure that was anything but human. Emerging from the darkness was a glowing pink jellyfish. The moment Sechan laid eyes on it, his face twisted in horror.
“C-Captain knows how things are, right? F-Fuck! Oh god, is this real?!”
He recognized the voice flowing from the creature’s tendrils. That was why his face turned pale.
Each time the tiny protrusions on the surface of the tendrils moved, voices of men and women continuously spilled out, as if replaying recorded sounds.
“B-Big Baby. Hahaha… Fuck!”
[ZZZ ZZ ZZ (You shouldn't say that.)]
Noticing my signal, the pink jellyfish Number 26 halted its movements.
｢Not allowed? Why?｣
[Z ZZ ZZ ZZ (It's a bad word.)]
｢I was calling Big Baby, though. That’s not okay?｣
[Zz zzzt zz zzzt zzzt (Not that part, the one after it.)]
“Fuck?”
[ZZ (That one.)]
It seemed 26’s studies on ‘speaking with sound’ had paid off. Its vocabulary had grown significantly probably at the level of a young child.
｢Got it. I won’t say it.｣
[ZZZ (Good.)]
｢Mhm!｣
“T-That voice… My crew… all of them?”
Ordinary humans couldn’t understand the conversation between me and 26. Even Sechan, despite his apparent genetic modifications, was no exception.
But he wasn’t so foolish as to miss what was happening around him.
I focused my consciousness on my combat arm. From the organ embedded within it, a tiny form slowly slithered out.
A parasite, long and eel-like, crawled along my arm, inching toward its target. Sechan, still trapped in my grip, began to tremble violently at the sight of it approaching.
“Unlike your subordinates, you won’t die.”
“W-Wait… Ugh?! Hrk—!”
“Not until you’ve spilled every last thought inside that head of yours.”
He struggled desperately to avoid infection, but his resistance was meaningless.
A few seconds later, his body went limp as the parasite seized control of his nervous system. Watching the entire process unfold, the griffon Mother of the Sky shuddered in disgust.
｢Parasites are always so nasty to look at. They just make my skin crawl.｣
[Z ZZZ ZZ (Really? I think they’re cute.)]
｢Now that’s a statement I wasn’t expecting. You have some strange tastes.｣
[ZZ ZZZ ZZZ ZZZ (You’re not exactly one to talk.)]
｢What? What’s wrong with this one? He’s cute like a retriever.｣
｢Gwooo.｣
She sent out a wave of telepathic energy as she stroked the Mountain Crawler. The creature, enjoying her touch, closed its eyes in contentment.
Even after looking at it countless times, I still failed to see how it resembled a retriever in any way. In both my world and this one, no dog existed with four eyes and six legs.
Not to mention, its size was comparable to mine. While its body length was shorter, the massive carapace covering it made it seem even larger. And this was after I had bulked up by acquiring the armor plating of a Destruction Beast.
｢Grung?｣
Sensing my gaze, the Mountain Crawler lumbered toward me. The sheer weight of its movements caused my nest to tremble.
Once it had closed the distance, it stretched its neck forward and rubbed its head against me.
She wasn’t entirely wrong, it was behaving like a pet dog.
Mountain Crawlers typically lived solitary lives, except when raising their offspring. Once their young were old enough to walk on their own, the entire family would separate, each going their own way.
For such an independent species, I hadn’t expected this level of affection.
｢See?｣
[Z ZZZ ZZ (Okay, I’ll admit, it’s kinda cute.)]
｢Tough Boy is adorable!｣
｢Gwoooo!｣
I gave the creature a light scratch behind the neck before turning my attention back to Sechan, now fully under the parasite’s control.
His vacant eyes were locked onto me, awaiting my command.
“Start by explaining the work you handled.”
“Yes.”
I questioned him about everything I could where he procured supplies, where Salman had ordered goods to be transported, and anything else that might be useful.
The interrogation lasted about two hours. By the end of it, he had spilled everything he knew.
Most of the information was useless. But there was one piece that caught my interest.
‘I’ll have to check that out myself.’
To verify it, I needed his ship. I had assigned Isabel to handle the pirate vessel, just in case. Good thing I did.
[ZZ ZZZ ZZ (I’ll step out for a bit.)]
｢I’m coming too.｣
I left the parasite-controlled Sechan in Mother of the Sky’s care and stood up. As I moved, Number 26 who had been playing with the Mountain Crawler hopped onto my head.
Using the tunnels the Mountain Crawler had dug, we surfaced.
Crawling out onto the blackened ground, I spotted something besides the three cultist ships, a vessel I had never seen before.
‘Is it that one?’
The ship resembled the warships of the Edgerton family, which I had previously seen at the T&C Special Trade Hub.
It was roughly 500 meters long, considerably smaller than the one I had seen before. However, despite its size, it shared the same golden embellishments and sleek, streamlined hull.
The grand-looking destroyer was half-buried in the ground, suggesting it had crash-landed.
Standing in front of the wreck were Isabel and PS-111. Nearby, Adhai, having returned from destroying the transport ship, was curled up and napping.
“Seriously, both you and Sister Seoa are weirdly good at flying ships.”
“If a flight simulation module is implanted, one can exhibit ace-pilot-level control.”
“Wait… do they, like, install it in your brain?”
“Since sensory response and data analysis capabilities must also be adjusted, partial neural modification is required.”
“…….”
PS-111 had sustained damage during the battle against Salman.
But as I could see, it was in perfect condition. In fact, thanks to some modifications over the past three days, it was slightly upgraded.
The most noticeable change was its arms; two of the original eight had been replaced with a new design.
Looking at the two new arms attached to the back of its torso, I noticed that instead of hands, they ended in short cylindrical structures. At the tip of each cylinder were three appendages, seemingly designed for stability during movement.
Additionally, four metallic pipes had been installed on its back, a minor yet notable change.
“If you wish, I can upgrade you as well.”
“My taste buds are already weird enough. No thanks.”
“I see. That is unfortunate.”
“Anyway, Sister, is your leg ah, Amorph?”
Isabel, mid-conversation, noticed me and paused.
[ZZZ (That ship?)]
“Yeah. Doesn’t look great, though.”
[ZZZ ZZ ZZZZ ZZ ZZZZ (That’s fine. As long as the ship’s computer is intact.)]
The vessel itself wasn’t important. I planned to extract the data and dispose of the rest.
“If you need information, I will assist.”
[ZZZZ (I’m counting on you.)]
“What specific data should I retrieve?”
I explained what I needed.
“I will secure the stored navigation logs and the captain’s personal records.”
[Z ZZ ZZ ZZZ ZZZ ZZZZZ ZZZ ZZZ (Good. If you come across anything else useful, grab that too.)]
“Understood.”
｢I’m going too! I need to find my study stuff.｣
“I will check for that as well.”
PS-111 nodded and approached the ship. Lifting its new arms, it aimed at the exterior hull.
The appendages on the cylinders unfolded outward, and the entire arm began to glow red-hot.
Moments later, white-hot flames erupted from the cylinders, searing the ship’s outer wall. Simultaneously, the metallic pipes on its back vented heat.
The design was based on the Pyromancer’s attack techniques, as described to me by Isabel a flamethrower modification.
Just as Pyromancers heated their arms to extreme temperatures before striking, PS-111 could use these two arms to unleash high-temperature flames.
However, unlike a Pyromancer, it couldn’t fully control thermal energy. The only reason its barrel-like structures weren’t melting was that they had been crafted from processed Magmasaur remains.
Even then, controlling the heat was difficult, requiring the pipes on its back to regulate temperature.
Within seconds, the ship’s outer plating began to melt.
A few moments later, a large hole had been burned through the hull. With the breach complete, PS-111 deactivated its flamethrower. Thanks to its internal cooling system, the arms quickly returned to their normal color.
“I minimized structural damage for future usability.”
[ZZZ (Thanks.)]
｢Wow! Friend is strong! So cool!｣
“I appreciate the positive feedback from the main controller.”
PS-111 examined its work with satisfaction before stepping inside. 26 eagerly bounced along, following it into the ship.
‘Guess it wanted to show off its new weapon.’
It could have just hacked the door open. The fact that it went out of its way to do this meant it probably wanted me to see.
So, I didn’t comment on it.
“Was that just Sister showing off her new legs?”
[ZZZ ZZ (Seems like it.)]
“Some things never change such a kid.”
Of course, Isabel was more than happy to call it out.
PS-111 would take some time to extract the ship’s records.
‘Might as well use this time to reconsider my next steps.’
There was nothing left for me on this planet.
Before moving to the next destination, I needed to check my body’s condition and finalize my future plans.
With that in mind, I summoned a translucent text box different from before. S~eaʀᴄh the NovelZone.fun website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.
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[Translator – Seraph]
[Proofreader – Draxx]
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