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HELHEIM SCANS
[Translator – Seraph]
[Proofreader – Draxx]
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Chapter 332
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The airship carrying Isabel and the cult ranker flies toward the outskirts of the city.
Despite being protected by a shield, the hull shook constantly. In fact, considering what was happening outside the hull, this level of vibration was nothing.
Shortly after the airship took off, an enormous shockwave hit the entire bio-dome surrounding the city.
Is this what it feels like to be in the middle of an erupting volcano?
Isabel had never experienced such an intense burst of energy before, nor its aftermath.
Through the airship's window, she could see a massive hole ripped in the bio-dome.
The walls forming the dome weren’t just a single layer, but a structure with multiple overlapping layers. The space between these layers ranged from dozens to hundreds of meters. Even if an orbital weapon like a thunderstrike were to fire at the dome, it was rare for the walls to be breached.
But the dome in front of them was clearly in ruins. The walls had collapsed, buildings were engulfed in flames, and countless ships had fallen from the sky, turning the city into an inferno.
The image of the beautiful city, once representing Verzan-02, was nowhere to be found.
"Madman. He's hell-bent on destroying the city."
The cult ranker muttered, his voice devoid of any emotion, despite the words.
‘What on earth is he thinking?’
The enemy had lived longer in this world than Isabel. Not only did they have immense personal power, but their influence was also vast.
However, in front of that infamous ranker, 'The Amorph', none of that mattered. In the game, even before reaching the top ranks, 'The Amorph' hunted rankers down.
Moreover, seeing the bio-dome destroyed, it was clear that the Amorph had grown much stronger since the game. Perhaps they had acquired traits that didn’t even exist in the game.
The enemy would surely know this. So why, in such a desperate situation, was the Amorph so calm?
“Curious about why I’m acting this way, are you?”
“….”
“Well, you must think I’m just slacking off, especially since I’m the one called the Amorph, huh? Especially when a lowly 14th ranker like me says it.”
“…No matter what we prepare, it will be hard to defeat them.”
From Isabel’s perspective, it was beneficial for the enemy to fall to the Amorph, but she couldn’t openly say that.
She had to protect the ones she hated the most, due to the contract Cynthia had made when she saved her life. Thus, she hid her true feelings and replied obediently.
“That’s right. If it’s just by myself.”
“By yourself?”
While the two were talking, the airship reached its destination.
'Where is this?'
Upon landing, Isabel recognized the place.
“Are you planning to siege your home?”
“Sort of, but it’s a little different.”
The enemy continued to speak in an unclear manner, neither fully understandable nor fully vague.
The two entered a rather modest-looking mansion. Normally, a slave would be waiting to greet them, but no one was in sight perhaps they had all fled.
Well, except for one person.
“You’ve arrived.”
Cult, whose face was strangely familiar, greeted the visitor at the mansion.
The two Cults stood facing each other.
Oddly enough, they looked exactly the same, as if they were reflections in a mirror. Their smooth, silvery hair and the tips of the yak horns growing from their temples.
It wasn’t just their appearance that matched. Their voices were identical, as if one had been recorded and played back.
Isabel, though she looked identical to her twin sister Penelope, didn’t resemble her so perfectly. The two Cults in front of her were indistinguishable, as if they had been mass-produced in a factory.
“Isabel, there’s no need to explain this one.”
“You’ll see my special traits, I suppose.”
Isabel nodded at their words.
'Simulacrum.'
A powerful ability that consumes vast amounts of energy to create identical copies of oneself.
Once ranked 14th and now commanding the Imperial flagship Verzan-02’s Defender, this is a unique ability of Alshas.
Though there were psychic abilities in the game that could create duplicates, Alshas's power was truly out of the ordinary. The copies retained the same consciousness, abilities, and equipment as the original. If someone were to fight Alshas, they would be essentially fighting multiple rankers at once.
Of course, there were a few fatal weaknesses, but the advantages overwhelmingly overshadowed them, making the drawbacks minor.
'But that's not enough to defeat The Amorph.'
While the Simulacrum was a powerful ability, it wasn’t enough to subdue the Amorph. Given that creature’s prowess, it would undoubtedly find Alshas’s weakness after just a few battles.
“Are you ready?”
“All set.”
“Good. Lead the way.”
“Isabel, too?”
“She’s going to fight alongside us anyway. Right?”
At Alshas’s question, Isabel silently nodded.
“Well, since it’s 'my' decision, there’s no issue. Follow me.”
Alshas, along with their duplicate, led the way through the mansion. They guided Isabel and the cult ranker to an elevator inside. Once the three of them boarded, the elevator descended rapidly.
“How about over there? The plan was your idea, wasn’t it?”
“You should already know. That one hates Amorph with a passion. He’s so eager it’s almost a problem.”
“That hatred must come from decades ago. For a coward, he sure has a strong grudge.”
“We’re not in a position to talk.”
“True enough.”
The elevator, which had been descending endlessly, finally came to a stop.
When the doors opened, a harsh scent surrounded Isabel’s antennae. It resembled the smell of melted asphalt, and it was so foul that her antennae tingled from the stench.
Both Alshas and the duplicate stepped out of the elevator without a care, and Isabel, following behind, was the first to see the massive underground cavern.
“This space was dug under the pretense of building a hover bus center.”
“Though the project was scrapped halfway through.”
“It doesn’t matter; this was the original intent anyway.”
“If things had gone as planned, we would’ve dug even more.”
“Circumstances have changed, so it can’t be helped. The size is fine for now.”
The vast space was large enough to accommodate several warships.
At the center stood a structure.
A biological mass formed into a 200-meter ring, covered inside by a translucent membrane. The vertical ring stretched from the ceiling to the floor, with sticky mucus-like threads tangled where it made contact.
Isabel knew exactly what this biological structure was.
It was called a 'bio-portal', a transportation device commonly used by Outspacers.
Alshas planned to summon a large number of Outspacers to fight the Amorph.
---
From the sky, a rain of metal falls. Molten steel beams and chunks of various metals pour down like a torrential storm.
Who would believe that those were just moments ago parts of the bio-dome’s outer wall or cult warships?
The place where I stand, surrounded by the bio-dome of the Fortress of Water, has a massive hole ripped in it. All of it is the result of the psychic breath I unleashed.
Thanks to the activation of 'Tyrantroid', my energy output has increased many times over. As a result, the outcome has been far more destructive than I intended.
'I only planned to take care of the warships and the Eye of Revelation priesthood.'
I never expected the bio-dome, known for its powerful defenses, to be destroyed. Even in the game, I had breached it multiple times, but this is the first time I’ve done it entirely with my own power. Normally, I would destroy the dome by causing an Imperial flagship in orbit to crash into it.
'It’s not what I expected, but it worked out well.'
The effect of 'Tyrantroid' increases the more damage I take, so the power of my psychic breath is far from over.
'If not for the fact that it’s hard to control, it would be perfect.'
The overwhelming power I felt just before unleashing the breath through my tentacles is no longer present. The vitality that was once enveloping my body is rapidly diminishing.
Due to the regenerative traits of my body, the Tyrantroid effect began to fade as my wounds healed.
｢Wow! So strong!｣
From behind, I felt a familiar yet intense pulse. It was a wave shot by Number 26, who had grown much larger.
｢Big baby, it must hurt, but it's so strong!｣
With its massive tentacles, Number 26 gently stroked my injured body.
Currently, I had grown much larger due to the effects of Tyrantroid. I wasn't as extreme as when I was transformed into a 'bone beast', but I had at least grown about 1.5 times my original size.
The size of Number 26 tentacles, which were now soothing my wounds, had also changed in proportion to my own body. It wasn’t just due to the 'The Fear of the Deep' effect; it was simply that Number 26 own size had grown considerably.
According to the settings, the size of a Sea Demon was between 20 to 30 meters, but in combat, it could temporarily inflate its body. Thanks to this, Number 26 now had an imposing presence that could be called the "Sea Demon."
'Though its behavior remains the same.'
｢Does it hurt?｣
[ZZ ZZZZ ZZZ (I’ll recover quickly, so it’s fine)]
"Due to the accelerated metabolism, the damaged cells and tissues are rapidly regenerating."
As PS-111, perched atop my head carapace, mentioned, the carapace that had been damaged by the Slayer and the main cannon was regenerating at a steady pace, though not instantly.
I stretched out my wing-arms and gently patted Number 26, who had entered battle mode. Each movement of my now-enormous body caused the surrounding buildings to shake violently.
With the enemy quickly incinerated, Adhai and the Mother of the Sky also flew toward me.
｢Big one!｣｢So strong!｣｢So strong!｣｢Big one!｣
Adhai seemed to be greatly pleased by both my new form and the destructive display I had just shown. Seeing it hop around on my back made it clear just how excited it was.
｢Was it because I shot with Tyrantroid power? The breath was almost at the level of Red Gallagon.｣
[ZZZ ZZZ (It wasn’t that strong)]
｢No way. After turning the Fortress of Water into this?｣
The Mother of the Sky clicked her tongue, staring at the wreckage of the bio-dome. She, too, knew just how difficult it was to destroy a bio-dome, and her reaction showed that she understood the magnitude of what I had done.
'It seems like the enemies inside the fortress have been dealt with.'
We still had time before the fleet outside the planet would arrive.
Before that, I needed to check on the enemy rankers.
[ZZZ ZZZZZ (Next, will it be Alshas?)]
｢Probably.｣
The deputy leader of the Eye of Revelation Priesthood was also a strong candidate for being a ranker, but he had vanished without a trace thanks to my breath.
"Before we go, I’d like to confirm the Coldbloods brought by your Brother.”
'Ah, right.'
I had almost forgotten.
The area where the slaves' quarters were located was far from the city center, so it hadn't been affected by the flooding. However, now that the dome had collapsed, I wasn't sure whether their hiding places had remained intact.
'If those guys die, it’s all for nothing.'
[ZZZ ZZZ Z (I’ll move. You stay on.)]
｢Okay!｣
Number 26 reduced its size to about 20 meters and climbed onto my back. It felt strange, like a giant water balloon wrapping around my body.
｢Narrow.｣｢Body.｣｢Smaller.｣
｢We can’t do that, there might be bad humans out there.｣
"You might fall off if I don’t wrap you with my tentacles. Stay close."
｢...It’s not something I should say right now, but it doesn’t look great.｣
Carrying the children on my back, I spread my wings wide. The Tyrantroid effect made my movements slower, but it didn’t reduce my ability to fly. I was still much faster than any personal airship.
After a few flaps, my body lifted off. I flapped my wings forcefully and headed toward the hidden slave storage.
In just a few minutes, I arrived at the area where the slaves’ quarters were clustered, carefully landing on the ground.
"A monster!"
"Ahh!"
The citizens of the city screamed and ran away upon seeing me. Among them were also warriors and priests of the cult.
With my heads wide open, I charged between the buildings, hunting down cult members who had been running away. I devoured dozens of them, replenishing my energy in the process, while my wing-arms lowered to help MPS-05 land easily.
[ZZ ZZZ ZZ (Go and help them.)]
"Understood. Understood."
“If there is an emergency, we’ll call you.”
The woman with the metallic legs quickly disappeared from my sight. PS-111, synced with the Mini-Screamer, would be sending me updates about MPS-05’s situation.
'That’s taken care of.'
I decided to leave the slaves to MPS-05 and head back to Alshas’s mansion.
As I crossed the chaotic streets and neared the outskirts of the city, I spotted the old mansion. Standing in front of it were two figures.
I slowed down and landed in the garden in front of the mansion. The impact from the landing shook the ground significantly, but the figures didn’t flinch at all.
One of them was someone I knew Isabel, the small Coldblood ranker.
The problem was the other person.
With smooth silver hair and a yak-horn on her temple, she was a cult member. I had recognized her instantly from the photos.
It was Alshas, the commander of the Imperial flagship Verzan-02.
The cult ranker was waiting for me.
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HELHEIM SCANS
[Translator – Seraph]
[Proofreader – Draxx]
Join our Discord for release updates!
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