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Chapter 65

“It was more than enjoyable. The T&C’s reputation is well-deserved, especially the main course. It’s a dish I’ve never tasted before.”

“It is an oven-roasted dish with Earthland pork as the main ingredient. Raised through pure free-range in an environment that is similar to that of Earth, it has a very rich texture.”

“Huh, I thought that all the pigs on Earth had gone extinct?”

“My research team managed to succeed in cultivating the pig seeds after coming from a difficult expedition. We plan to introduce a new brand to the market in a few years.”

“Well, that’s impressive. I’d definitely want to purchase it when it hits the market.”

The T&C family is a pioneer in noble colonial expansion. Their power lies in the abundant resources they have secured from their numerous colonies. Thanks to this, The T&C could secure their influence in a distinct way compared to other families. ‘Politics through cuisine’. That was how they exerted influence on the upper class of MegaCorp.

They own more than a few hundred colonial planets, meaning they can acquire various ingredients from planets with different environments. As a result, T&C almost monopolizes the high-end ingredient and spice market mainly targeting the upper class of the MegaCrop.

Of course, in terms of supplying food within MegaCorp, the Yujin family, which specializes in producing genetically modified foods, has a much higher share as they target all the low income groups within the MegaCorp.

However, the benefits gained by actively using fresh and rare ingredients to maintain a good relationship with the upper class are not insignificant.

In fact, it works wonders, like now Denver felt reassured after eating the banquet’s cuisine, enough to anticipate seeing Laila again.

“I deliberately chose this dish to suit my taste.”

The room, the cuisine—everything catered to Denver’s preferences.

With this level of information, the likelihood of making a significant mistake at the council is slim. Denver, feeling relieved, picked up a crispy piece of pork skin with his fork just as the door to the banquet hall opened, and two people entered.

“Huh?”

“What’s happening?”

The newcomers were Laila’s secretary and Vice Commander Vicus. Both hurriedly approached their respective masters.

“My lord, urgent news.”

“Urgent?”

“We lost contact with the four knights who went to protect William.”

Denver’s face hardened at the vice commander’s words.

‘All four of them?’

The Silver Lion Knights are a unit stationed with the task of protecting the flagship of Eden, which specializes in defense and assault against enemy ships and is the most crucial unit of any fleet.

Therefore, the capabilities of the Silver Lion Knights, who were tasked with safeguarding this flagship, can be considered to be the highest among the Eden families’ ground forces.

Warriors of such caliber being wiped out hinted at a formidable adversity

“…What’s the follow-up plan?”

“It’s already in motion. I dispatched all the 20 knights available. Jacob is leading them.”

“Hmm… also, recall the members sent outside immediately… Huh?”

Denver, calmly instructing Vice Commander Vicus, suddenly stopped speaking. On the other side of the dining table, Laila, receiving a report like Denver, had an unusual expression. Her usually composed face was visibly distorted.

Having heard about the reports from the secretary, she tried to maintain composure and called Denver.

“Mr. Denver. There’s a report that the Silver Lion Knights forcibly attacked the civilians at the hospital in the commercial district.”

“…What?”

“I’ll show you.”

As Laila gestured, the secretary operated the terminal pad, and a large holographic screen appeared at the banquet’s wall.

[I am DailyMass field reporter Sara and I’m currently standing in front of the Commercial District Hospital No. 2 , the scene where a tragedy has occurred.]

The screen showed a journalist reporting from in front of the hospital.

‘Surely not?’

When Denver glanced at Vicus, he nodded slightly. That place was the hospital where William was admitted.

In the meantime, the journalist appeared with a new figure. The person in question was a man wearing a patient’s gown.

[Can you explain what the hell is going on in there?]

[I was injured while working and was hospitalized. I came out to smoke at night, but I saw four people in weird clothes come in. They were trying to destroy the hospital, shooting guns and breaking the intact walls, and even shooting the people—everyone went crazy.”

[You mean people in armor?]

[Yes! Armor! Those ‘beep’ guys in armor. They shot guns, and the walls that were intact broke, and ‘beep’ people also ‘beep’—it was a complete ‘beep’ disaster!]

[Thank you for the detailed explanation. With the Council meeting just a few days away, what does the massacre of civilians by the ‘armor-wearing individuals’ in T&C’s Special Trade Center mean? What exactly are the city administrators doing? More details…]

Midway through, Laila gestured to stop. The hologram turned off, and the banquet hall fell into pin drop silence.

Laila, breaking the silence, spoke first.

“Mr. Denver, I don’t believe Eden’s knights would do such a thing without reason.”

“…….”

“This matter is not exclusive to the Eden family. I, as the administrator of this city, have the right to know about the situations occurring in the city. So, please tell me.”

It was a request to tell everything before the situation escalated, and blood was forced to shed.

During the banquet, Denver had taken a friendly attitude, making Laila realize that Denver was friendly to T&C and had no ill intentions. Therefore, she politely requested cooperation, expressing that this issue was not just a problem for Eden but for the entire city.

‘The problem is, she doesn’t know about the situation on Denver’s side.’

Initially, the knights were sent to protect William, but since all of them had perished the possibility of William being alive was slim. The current situation became difficult for Denver, as the only one who knew the truth had died. Any mistake could lead to a war between T&C and Eden rather than an issue with the Council.

‘I have to tell everything.’

Taking a deep breath, Denver briefly explained the situation to Laila; he told her about William and the orders he had given to his subordinates.

“Does that mean there’s a connection between the so-called William and the police?”

“That’s right.”

“A few days ago, a mysterious smuggling organization failed to smuggle a Mountain crawler from Harbor Earth, and they fled. I heard that. It might be related.”

“Whether the culprit is the Mountain crawler or not, check it yourself, Vice Commander.”

“Yes.”

“Contact Jacob, We need to understand the situation there, so tell him to turn on the cameras.”

“Understood.”

The vice commander Vicus contacted Jacob through the communication device, and as Laila’s secretary did before, operated the terminal pad.

[Reporting. Silver Lion Knights’ Jacob greets the Commander. The camera is synced, and we are approaching the 2nd Hospital.]

[Team 2 Tennessee, sync completed. Arriving at the back gate.]

[Team 3 Ferris, sync completed. No abnormalities.]

As Jacob operated the terminal on his helmet, the cameras attached on his helmet and Vice Commander vicus’ terminal synchronized.

Through the hologram, the scene of the hospital, which was shrouded in smoke, was revealed.

***

‘Team 2 is entering through the back, and Team 3 is on standby.’

Figures clad in silver armor were swiftly encircling the hospital with smooth and agile movements. Their coordination and agility showed that they were proper elites, and on a whole different level as compared to the opponents I’ve encountered so far.

‘If I were in the hospital, it would have been quite a challenge to fight against them.’

‘But I’m already outside.’

I was currently observing the enemies from a nearby media building, having left the hospital. The auxiliary device on my chin was continuously collecting information on the movements and conversations of the enemies, who had their full attention on the blazing hospital.

While there isn’t a significant change in it’s appearance, the upgraded auxiliary device is capable of detecting even the conversations exchanged through communication devices.

Thanks to their verbal communication, I know exactly where the enemies are entering and how they plan to attack me.

[Team 1, enter!]

[Team 2, enter!]

After confirming their entry, I descended down through the wall of the building. Since all the journalists rushed out to the front of the hospital in search of breaking news, the building was devoid of people.

As I landed on the ground, I ran towards the station.

Although my footsteps made loud noise, due to the surroundings being extremely noisy with police, journalists, ambulances, and fire trucks present. No one noticed my presence.

[Team 1, confirm a fire inside the building. Team 2, switch to the vibration detection system instead of the heat detection.]

[Team 2, switch completed.]

[Team 3, on standby.]

Even while running, the auxiliary organ did not stop gathering information. Among the plethora of information, it extracted the part where enemies communicated through communication devices and relayed it to me.

‘There’s not much time left.’

While there’s still some duration left for metal absorption, the ‘Symbol of the Hunt’ is the issue. Out of the limited 10 minutes, I spent around 8 minutes in the hospital. The remaining time is roughly two minutes.

‘I need to devour as many journalists at the station as possible before the effect wears off.’

The Eden Knights are all genetically modified humans. While not as extensive as Hulk mutants or experimental subjects like Si-Hyun Yujin, they are prey with more useful genes than ordinary citizens.

‘Might as well take advantage of the situation.’

To truly become an Amorph, I need to devour everything the enemies possess.

Thanks to the ‘Symbol of the Hunt,’ the time taken to reach the station from the hospital was extremely short.

I saw six knights standing guard in front of the station.

They didn’t notice me running towards them. Hence I decided to utilize my newly acquired long-range attack.

[Thorn-Spine Launch Tail: A mechanism that launches lethal thorn-spines is developed on the tail, replacing the Spine Projectile Organ.

*Note: Unlike hedgehogs, Amorph doesn’t have to worry about dilemmas, which must be nice.]

The appearance of my tail changed significantly. The end of the tail is now covered with long spine needles, reminiscent of a porcupine or a hedgehog with densely packed needles.

The combination of the spine needle feature and the Spine Projectile Organ resulted in a new capability.

‘Unlike the Spine Projectile Organ, this one shoots in volleys.’

If the previous one resembled a sniper rifle, this one could be considered a machine gun. While it lacks the penetration power of the spine bone, it has the advantage of burrowing into the opponent’s body upon impact, causing wounds to go inward. Additionally, it can apply a neurotoxin effect to it, making it effective in battles against multiple enemies.

Since the Spine Projectile Organ feature disappeared, the left lower arm returned to its appearance as another combat arm, but I didn’t mind. Each feature has its own strengths and weaknesses.

In a situation where I need to subdue multiple enemies simultaneously, the Thorn-Spine Launch Tail is a much better option..

While running, I did not stop the tail and launched a volley of spine needles towards the knights.

[Team 1 here, Team 3 on alert. Report the situation.]

[Team 3 here. No visible enemies… Boom!]

Dozens of thorn-spines, each the length of a hand, pierced the bodies of the knights. The enemies reacted with surprise to my attack.

“It’s an enemy! Everyone, prepare to counterattack—what?”

“We can’t move!”

“The thorns are stuck in the joint parts!”

Due to the superior defense of their high-level reinforced armor, the spine needles could only penetrate their armor but not pierce through. However, they were stuck in the joint parts, restricting the movements of the enemies.

‘These thorn-spines are quite sturdy.’

Of course, considering the effectiveness of the advanced reinforced armor they were wearing, it was only a matter of time for time to pass, but that’s enough.

‘They haven’t switched from heat detection in their field of view yet, right?’

Teams 1 and 2 entered the burning hospital, after changing the surveillance system in their helmets to a different format, but these 6 haven’t done it yet.

I opened my mouth wide. The internal incendiary mechanism activated, and soon an enormous amount of flames poured out through my throat.

“Ah!”

“He’s shooting fire!”

The magma gaiter’s trait, the ‘Fire Breath’, erupted against the knights. Black smoke rose from the flames spreading in front of the station, penetrating even inside the station.

“Everyone, switch your sight!”

Despite the blockade of movement and vision, the enemies calmly responded.

Of course, I’m not going to wait for them to get ready.

I charged at the journalist who was in charge of communications. The journalist, who took the brunt of my charge, couldn’t even scream as his whole body was crushed.

[Team 1 here. Team 3, respond! What’s going on?”

“This is Rex! Ferris is down!”

With little time left, I picked up the dismembered body of the fallen knight and immediately placed it in my mouth.

Meanwhile, another knight, who had switched the surveillance system, aimed a Plasma bolter at me.

“Huh?!”

His intention to shoot me with a plasma bullet did not succeed.

There’s a single reason why I shot fire.

To block the enemies’ line of sight.

Here, the term ‘enemy’ doesn’t just refer to the knights in front of me. The ‘enemies’ I mentioned also include the cameras installed in the station as well.

｢Big baby, we’re here.｣

My underground friends. They were hiding in the smoke, ready to assist me.

“Ugh, guh!”

The knight affected by Number 26’s ‘Restraint’ floated in the air. Like a child grabbing a bug and tearing off its limbs, his arms and legs attached to his body danced independently.

“Ah!”

“Rex!”

Following the sound of bones detaching, his arms and legs fell off with the sound of a firecracker. The knight, now resembling an octopus, fell into a puddle of blood, twitching for a moment before becoming still.

[This is Team 3! We’re under attack! Requesting supp… ack!]

[What the hell is happening?]

[This is Team 2! We’ll provide support right away!]

[Damn it! Tennessee, stay in your position!]

The confused voices of the enemies through the communication device, the journalists thrown into panic after losing a colleague in an instant.

It was a familiar scene.

“Retreat! Retre… urgh!”

One knight, trying to flee, was shot in the throat. It was Adhai who accurately aimed at the enemy’s weakness.

｢Organism｣, ｢Throat｣, ｢Weakness｣.

Through the smoke, Adhai transmitted a low-frequency wave.

If the knight had activated the psychic shield embedded in his advanced reinforced armor, he would have survived. It was his mistake to expose his back during the battle.

After that, it was a swift process to clean up the station completely.

Within a few minutes of starting the fight, the journalists, having lost half of their comrades, were not in their right minds. The Knight Order, which has always brought victory to their masters, perished.

There were only herds trembling with fear.

As for what a herd without a leader could do in front of a wolf, there was only one thing.

Just cry pitifully.

Like there was no wolf to save a herd crying.

Having dealt with the remaining three knights, I quickly picked up two corpses and rushed into the station.

After dealing with the three remaining knights, I quickly picked up two bodies.

‘Hurry, hurry!’

I cut the bodies and poured them into my mouth, while swiftly entering the station.

[ZZ ZZZ ZZZZ ZZZ ZZ ZZ (Get everything you can eat and go back to the nest)]

｢Can’t we eat here?｣

[ZZZ ZZZZZ ZZ ZZZZZ ZZ (No time. Grab as much as you can and follow me)]

｢I｣ ｢Hungry.｣

｢Got it. I’ll take care of what’s left.｣

Knowing that I was in a hurry, Number 26 quietly reached out its tentacles and picked up two bodies. Adhai also tried to pick up one, but it was too heavy, so it gave up.

That’s how we carried four bodies with us and returned back to the nest.

Just before the effects of the ‘Symbol of the Hunt’ wore off, I could hear it.

One of the late-arriving enemy knights screaming in frustration.

In the smoke and darkness which engulfed the surroundings, I smiled.