Became an Evolving Space Monster - Chapter 417
Only Krnovel
No, it felt more than familiarity, it was a sense of inexplicable closeness. It was as if familiarity had been forcibly injected into me.
“The changed ending mission will begin soon.”
As we were looking into the goat horn cult in more detail, the information function opened its mouth.
As he spoke, an altar-shaped terminal popped out from the square. The players’ eyes were drawn to the altar.
I also know what that altar is. It is a kind of material transformation device. When you absorb the shadow core that you observe, the appearance and nature of the altar changes.
“The final protocol for the previous projection system is as you know. The final protocol was carried out using that terminal.”
For human players, it is a transcendent communication device that mediates the integration of intelligent beings spread across the universe, and if the race that placed the core is an Outspacer, it is an absolute weapon that can destroy the Vortex One that has taken control of their homeworld.
And if you use the changed tool, you will immediately reach the ending of Space Survival.
“But ‘they’ were not happy about the system being shut down so easily.”
‘them?’
“Grrr”
Suddenly, the heads on either side of them growled. The eyeless left and right heads turned their snouts into the air.
There was a dark spot on the very high ceiling that wasn’t there until just now. No one noticed the dark spot because of the altar.
“‘They’ decided to arbitrarily change the protocol and impose stronger trials.”
And then something popped out of there.
It was more than twice as large as the shadow being observed, and it fell onto the square. Soon, a loud noise and shockwave shook the entire space.
The rankers turned their heads in surprise. At the end of their gaze was ‘that thing’ slowly standing up while covering themselves with debris. Everyone’s faces were filled with confusion as they saw the thing.
The moment ‘it’ roared and charged at the rankers, space began to collapse.
“Your body reconstruction is complete. This concludes the transmission of information.”
‘Wait a minute!’
As the information function said, I was waking up from inside the cocoon. But I didn’t have time to pay attention to it.
It’s because of ‘that’ I saw last.
As soon as I saw him, I instinctively knew what he was.
It looked very different from what I knew, but I was certain. In Space Survival, no one knew more about its existence than I did.
‘It’ was clearly an ‘unidentified hostile space creature’, Aimorph.
‘The last boss that came out was definitely Aimov! Why was Aimov there? And who are they?’
“We cannot answer these questions in detail due to security reasons.”
‘shit!’
My body was shattered like a sand castle being swept away by waves. No matter how hard I tried to hold on, it was no use.
“There is a being on Earth who can answer your questions. I hope you meet him.”
‘earth?’
“And this is the final piece of information, or rather advice.”
In the collapsing space, the information function body with only its head remaining spoke.
“It is not your illusions or your memories that define you. It is only the choices you make in each moment that define your existence. Never forget the choices you have made.”
With those words, the being that resembled me disappeared. I too was buried in the collapsing black space.
Soon, a new sensation is felt in the body. A warm liquid enveloping the whole body and a hard piece of shell is felt inside it. These are familiar sensations that I encounter every time I wake up from the cocoon.
I came back to reality.
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418 Bad Relationship (1)
‘… … .’
My head is complicated.
The changed ending mission, the sudden appearance of Aimorph, and the beings called ‘them’. None of these are things to be taken lightly.
That information function, despite arguing about important information, didn’t provide any necessary explanations. The information obtained was too little and fragmented. It was difficult to infer anything based on this.
The only thing that could be confirmed for sure was that the boss in charge of the ending trial had transformed into a being similar to Aimorph.
‘I want to grab him and ask him, but…’
To meet him, I have to go into a situation where my body is reconstructed, that is, into a cocoon. And the only way to enter the cocoon is to fuse unique characteristics.
‘I can’t create a unique trait right now.’
Currently, I have only two unique trait synthesis formulas unlocked. One of them requires the trait of Arcane Orca, so I can’t synthesize it yet.
Another one has all the ingredients, but among them is ‘Harvester’s Mouth’. Thanks to Harvester’s Mouth, I can enjoy the predator effect by only consuming the enemy’s head.
One of the reasons I came here is to bring the corpse of the Arcane Orca to Adhai. If I hunt the Arcane Orca without the Harvester’s Mouth, I have to give up one of two things. Either I don’t eat it to save Adhai, or I eat it.
If you choose the latter, the lives of Adhai and the Gallagon pack will likely be at risk, as it will take a considerable amount of time to find a new Arcane Orca.
The ideal scenario would be for the unique trait to inherit the material’s effects, but you can’t expect that, because you never know what the outcome will be.
‘The only way left is….’
Going to Earth as the information body said.
He said there was a being on Earth who could answer my questions.
‘Probably a ranker who survived the siege.’
There is one person I can guess.
A human ranker who fought against the previous boss, ‘Observing Shadow’. He fought the enemy by changing his body at will. Among the rankers who fought me, there is one who has the same ability.
‘Akira Eugene, CEO of Megacorp.’
Although their appearances are completely different, the opponent has the ability to shapeshift. He can change his appearance at will.
‘… Damn, I should have caught it then.’
I thought I was lucky to get the Hiveformer, but I was wrong. I should have eaten its real head, even if it meant going to extremes. That would have helped me a lot this time.
‘Whew.’
I shook my head to shake off my worries. Dried mucus and cocoon shells fell from my head in thaws.
It’s already in the past. There’s no point in regretting it now.
‘Once this hunt is over, I’ll have to get ready to drag that bastard out.’
Going directly into the solar system is not a very good idea.
The solar system, which is the core territory of Megacorp, has a very high level of security. Even a single crisis management team member is armed to the point that he or she is wearing plasma weapons and enhanced suits as standard equipment. Space fortresses are spread throughout the constellation, and a large fleet is deployed in each fortress.
‘If I lead the entire Gallagon horde, I might be able to break through…’
Instead, it is clear that Gallagon will also suffer damage close to annihilation.
In that case, it would be better to lure Akira somewhere other than the solar system.
‘The question is how to attract them.’
He’s been defeated by me many times in games, and once in real life. Trying any kind of trick will only make him more cautious.
It would be better to gather information related to Akira and then make a plan to bring it out.
‘Come to think of it, if he’s a ranker in the Sino Group, he might know something.’
The cartels under the name Sino are supported by the great powers. The ranker leading the group is likely to be acquainted with the CEO of Megacorp.
‘All the more reason to eat pirates.’
Their heads were needed, if only to gather information.
Anyway, I decided to stop thinking about what I saw in my fantasy and what to do next. Whatever it is, it’s something I can solve after hunting the Arcane Orca.
‘Where then… .’
It’s time to check out your newly acquired unique traits and physical changes.
I opened my eyes after wiping the mucus from my eyes with my arm.
As soon as I opened my eyes, I saw white wing arms instead of the reddish black carapace. The tentacles created by the hiveformer effect were all dyed a murky white. The carapace inside the tentacles were the same.
‘what?’
It’s not just the color that’s changed. The eye level is much lower than before it entered the cocoon. The overall size of the body has decreased significantly.
The length from the tip of the head to the tip of the tail was reduced to approximately 30m. In addition, the two tails and three necks took up a large proportion of the body, so the actual body length was less than 10m.
‘This is the first time it’s gotten this small.’
I raised my body slightly, using my arms to get a closer look.
When I stretched out my folded arms, they were much longer than I thought. It seems that a joint part was added to each arm. Thanks to this, the wing arms, which were already long, have become over 10m long. The parts that functioned as legs before entering the cocoon have also changed into the same shape as the combat arms.
In contrast to the thin and long arms, the torso was short and thick. The back and dorsal carapace were deformed and swollen to house the organs associated with the characteristics such as the erosion tentacles and the human face.
Long arms, still long and large neck and tail, and a relatively short and thick body. Its body type is similar to that of a crab or a tarantula.
‘It seems similar to an octopus.’
The sight of tentacles of a color similar to fog writhing all over its body reminded me of a sea monster from a horror novel.
“Huh?”
“Grrrrr”
Both heads woke up late.
‘Huh?’
The moment the two heads raised their necks with a low growl, something strange caught my eye. Only the parts that had been immersed in black mucus were dyed black. The tentacles covered in black continued to shake without my conscious thought.
As if trying to mimic the appearance of liquid collected in a nest.
‘Is this the effect of this trait?’
After a while, my entire body changed to look exactly like the discolored area. It was a perfect camouflage that made it unrecognizable, even though it was my body.
Not only that. I raised my arms and waved them around. The tentacles moved delicately in time with my movements, maintaining their camouflage.
‘It’s not just about hiding your body or anything.’
There are many types of traits that camouflage themselves by changing the color of their bodies. However, this is the first time I’ve seen it maintain its effect while moving the body. It was so effective that it even mimicked the phenomenon of water shaking.
‘Is this definitely the only characteristic?’
It’s a pretty good trait that maintains camouflage while moving. It would be even more useful if combined with traits like ‘Dark Curtain’.
‘but….’
I felt a little disappointed.
The unique characteristics created using the Transcendence System all showed extraordinary power. The current camouflage ability is great enough, but it is rather boring compared to the characteristics obtained before.
‘I’ll skip over the reduced size since it has its pros and cons. Are there any other things besides this?’
I haven’t checked the text box yet.
I was trying to check if there were any additional effects that I wasn’t aware of, when suddenly I heard the sound of water. The MPS-03 was approaching.
Finally, the guy stopped in front of my arm.
“Gochi. None? None?”
Even the mini screamer, which had its eyes replaced with cameras, didn’t notice me right in front of it.
“Search. Needed.”
The guy hesitated for a moment, then started climbing up my arm with his metal legs. It seemed like he wanted to get up high and check things out.
‘How do I unlock this?’
It’s not a trait that can be released just by moving, like the ‘protective coloration’ trait. I focused my senses on the moving bundle of tentacles.
Consciousness spreads out like a net thrown over the water in an instant. The moment the end of the spider web woven by the mind touches the tentacles, it turns white again and the stomach is released.
“Eimov! Found! Found!”
MPS-03, who was climbing hard above me, was startled. I caught the Mini Screamer that was about to fall with my hand and lowered it onto the nest.
“Growth complete? Size. Shrinking.”
“That’s true, but I gained new powers instead.”
“Disguise, interest. Principle unknown.”
The creature poked the tentacles with its metal legs. Some of the tentacles reacted by turning chrome-colored before returning to their original state.
“Did you come to check if Kochi woke up?”
“Affirmative. Middle child, port. Standby.”
I see that the Mother in Heaven has already come here.
‘You came earlier than I thought.’
Before I went into Kochi, I told PS-111 to call the Heavenly Mother here. But I didn’t know she would come this quickly.
“I need to check something for a moment. I’ll be back in a bit.”
“check.”
I sent the guy first and checked the text box.
｢Eerie Mimic: A savvy predator knows how to take advantage of its prey. It gains a permanent camouflage effect. It can use the ‘metamorphosis organ’ to transform its body by taking advantage of its powerful prey.
*’Metamorphosis Organ’: Reanalyzes the marks left behind by powerful prey to create new parts or organs. Up to 2 marks can be targeted. 30 days must pass before changing an applied mark to another mark.
*Note: Once a token has been reanalyzed, it cannot be reanalyzed.
*P.S. Selection and adaptation. Another name for evolution.