Chapter 252:

Chapter 252:

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As Si-Hyun Yujin's transport ship barely cleared the atmosphere, an urgent report arrived from the flagship.

“The Star Union fleet has already arrived?”

She had known about the incoming fleet through satellites positioned at the outskirts of the Star System. However, she didn’t expect them to arrive this quickly.

Moreover, the enemies had brought with them a Warp Finder, a device capable of tracking faster-than-light movements. It was as if they had come to track down someone specific.

“Could it be that they've discovered the location of JAX-01?”

The MegaCorp and Star Union were officially at war. To the cyborgs, Si-Hyun’s faction was just another enemy of the Star Union. The fact that a regular fleet had come to such an isolated location with a Warp Finder could only mean one thing.

‘...This isn’t good.’

As long as the Warp Finder was present, the flagship was as good as on borrowed time. Even if they tried to escape via faster-than-light travel, the enemy would immediately follow.

Her thoughts momentarily drifted to the ‘artifacts’ stored in the transport ship.

The weapon ‘Abyssal Destroyer,’ used by Beomho, her former mentor, to annihilate an Outspeiser, along with the Crystal Battery that provided it with immense energy.

‘If I use that, I could break through without much difficulty.’

The urge to use the weapon welled up inside her, but she shook her head.

She still didn't fully understand the enemy’s objectives or the current battle situation. There was no need to use the weapon until she had gathered more information.

“Any other notable details?”

“Uh, well...”

At Si-Hyun’s question, her subordinate hesitated before replying.

“According to communications from the flagship, they’re currently engaged in combat with a group of creatures presumed to be Gallagons!”

“Gallagons?”

The subordinate’s answer was far beyond her expectations.

‘Why Gallagons?’

“The Gallagons are attacking the fleet, so the flagship is currently just observing without engaging.”

“...Hmm.”

She had struggled with the Gallagons when she first set foot on the planet, as they appeared regularly. In fact, their presence was a significant reason for her delayed entry into the volcano. She had deliberately kept changing her travel route to avoid the Gallagons.

‘I don’t know how, but...’

The unpredictable movements of these creatures had actually turned into an advantage for her.

“For now, we’ll take advantage of this situation. Return to the flagship carefully, and avoid getting caught in the battle.”

“Understood.”

Beyond the reinforced glass of the transport ship, she could see the twinkling of starlight.

Some of those twinkles weren’t stars.

---

‘What is that?’

I had just taken out the fourth Warp Finder. As I discarded the now useless chunk of metal into space, an unfamiliar ship caught my eye.

An oval-shaped vessel floated alone at a considerable distance from the battlefield. Judging by its design, it wasn’t a Star Union ship but rather a MegaCorp vessel.

‘Why is a Megacorp ship here... ah.’

Seeing the ship, something came to mind.

Before I captured Odd Grad, when I raided the Hellside Hornet’s nest, there was a time I devoured a human. The one who had fused with a human-faced creature mentioned that he had come here following Si-Hyun Yujin.

‘That must be her ship.’

Since Si-Hyun Yujin had died by my hand, that vessel likely belonged to the forces that followed her.

‘What should I do?’

It had been 20 minutes since the battle began. One Warp Finder still remained.

The time I initially set for myself was 25 minutes. Although I’d like to learn more about the situation from the crew of that ship, I didn’t have the luxury to spend time on side tasks.

‘If there’s time left, I’ll deal with it.’

I tore my gaze away from the vessel and pursued the retreating fleet.

The XAX-5-class high-speed battleship carrying the last Warp Finder seemed determined to buy time, desperately fleeing.

‘As expected of a high-speed battleship, it’s pretty fast.’

It was just barely slower than Adhai. I prepared to finish it off with a psychic breath, but then the Gallagons began to move.

‘A checkmate, is it?’

I glanced back at the Gallagons and the ships behind me.

‘There's only one option.’

The primary target the enemy, or rather, the Grand Sovereign's player, sought was obvious.

‘Their goal is me. In that case...’

[ZZ ZZZZ ZZZ (Everyone, return to the ship.)]

「Elder?」

[ZZZZ Z ZZ ZZZ ZZZZ (Don't worry. I have a good plan.)]

I sent a reassuring wave to Adhai, who looked concerned, and called out to the Mother of the Sky.

[ZZZ ZZZ ZZZZ ZZZZ ZZZ ZZ (You know where to go to advance the deification stage, right?)]

「What? Don’t tell me you're...」

[ZZZ ZZ (Meet me there.)]

「Are you insane? You plan to act as bait?」

Strictly speaking, it wasn’t just bait.

I intended to fight them off and then execute a faster-than-light jump toward the territory of the Cult or the Megacorp. That way, we could recreate a situation similar to when the Cult and Star Union clashed previously.

‘It’s true that we’ll be vulnerable during the jump preparation phase, but it’ll be fine.’

Thanks to my transformation into the "Bone Beast", my defensive capabilities have increased exponentially. It’s already been proven that the enemy torpedoes can't inflict fatal damage on me. Additionally, the energy required for the jump can be substituted with the near-infinite supply of psychic power, pumped by my "Dragon's Heart" trait.

The only real concern is the Grand Sovereign.

My fate hinges on whatever weapon he brings.

‘I've never been one to gamble.’

Still, it's better than losing everything in a fight with them.

Leaving everyone behind, I flew forward.

Since arriving in this world, I've constantly faced choices.

Some led to positive outcomes, while others didn’t. Looking back, I’ve always had a mix of good and bad decisions.

But I’ve never regretted them.

Because I’m still alive. And I don't know how many more wrong choices I might make.

But even then, I’ll keep living. Just as I have until now.

As I flew forward with those thoughts, a red star soared alongside me.

‘Adhai?’

It wasn’t just her. Other Gallagons had chosen not to return to the hangar and instead followed me.

The same was true for PS-111's ship. Rather than preparing for faster-than-light travel, the colossal battleship floated above me, its turrets extending outward.

「If the big baby keeps saying bad things, she'll get scolded!」

Number 26’s telepathic wave reached me from the ship.

「Adhai」「Kin」「Will not abandon」

I sensed the telepathic wave Adhai sent as she flew beside me.

「It’s so like you Morphback, always trying to fight alone,」 Mother of the Sky grumbled from aboard the ship.

「PS-111 told me to relay a message: it’ll locate the Warp Finders as quickly as possible, so hold on.」

I was left speechless by their words.

Was my heart full? No.

Fighting alone here would’ve been a perfectly reasonable choice. I’ve always fought alone and emerged victorious.

But as I watched those following me, another thought emerged.

I’ve always won on my own, so if I fought alongside them, wouldn’t it be even easier?

An Amorph, a Sea Demon, a host of Gallagons, a colossal battleship, and a Wolf Ranker.

With this force, we might stand a chance against over a hundred state-of-the-art enemy ships.

[ZZZ ZZZZZ (Start with torpedoes and breath attacks.)]

In the end, after a thoroughly rational thought process, my chosen path was to fight together.