BXBX NOVEL Chapter 250
[Proofreader – Draxx]
Chapter 250
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A single spaceship was orbiting the snow-white planet, drifting like a snowball.
It belonged to Si-Hyun Yujin, who was secretly working to overthrow the usurper of the Yujin family, Akira Yujin. Currently, Min-Seok Yujin, Si-Hyun\'s butler, was acting as the ship\'s captain in her stead since she had descended to the planet.
In Si-Hyun\'s office, Min-Seok was handling several tasks on her behalf.
He took his eyes off the terminal pad and pressed his temples with his fingers. A report he had received a few hours ago was weighing heavily on him.
‘They’ve found the artifact, huh?’
Contact had been made by the exploration team that had lost communication due to radio interference until now.
They reported that Si-Hyun had recovered the artifacts yesterday and was currently returning to the exploration vessel. He had thought her pursuit of these artifacts was nothing more than a wild goose chase, but it turned out that he was mistaken.
‘…We still can\'t be certain.’
When exploring new planets, objects that appear to be ancient relics are sometimes discovered. However, none of these artifacts ever possessed the incredible power that the media often glorified. Most were simply unique objects that ended up in museums or auction houses.
So, it was most likely that what Si-Hyun had found would turn out to be just another item you\'d see in an auction. If that were the case, his master would have wasted a considerable amount of time on a pointless endeavor.
‘Who would\'ve thought cloning would have this kind of side effect.’
While the Megacorp prohibits the production of clones, the Star Union does not. Just as Megacorp modifies its employees into Hulk Mutants, the Star Union uses clones as raw material for their bio-weapon soldiers. It could be said that their clone manufacturing technology is quite advanced.
However, there are drawbacks to the Star Union\'s cloning technology, including issues with memory transfer, brain abnormalities, and mental instability.
Si-Hyun Yujin tried to minimize these side effects by applying Megacorp’s genetic modification technology and the psychic power techniques she learned from a cult during her childhood.
In other words, the "Cloned Si-Hyun", who currently resides beneath that white star, is essentially a being that incorporates the most advanced technologies from the most intelligent beings in this universe. Yet, despite that, the fact that she was engrossed in some ridiculous legend or myth left Min-Seok feeling exasperated.
‘If I use what she left behind…’
Min-Seok took out an item from his inner pocket.
The small, lighter-sized remote in his hand was something the original Si-Hyun Yujin had left for him.
If the clone ever deviated from the predetermined plan, this would be the tool to stop her.
“Sigh…”
He sighed, fiddling with the remote, when suddenly the terminal pad lit up. A call was coming from the situation room.
“This is Min-Seok. What’s going on?”
｢S-sir, we have an emergency! The satellite positioned at the system\'s outer rim has detected a massive warp energy signature!｣
“What?!”
Min-Seok shot up from his seat at the urgency in his subordinate\'s voice.
“Where is it coming from? Can you identify it?”
｢According to the energy analysis, there’s a 78% chance that it’s the elite fleet of the Star Union! Judging by the energy flow, the vanguard should arrive within a few hours!｣
“Damn it! What about Jax-01? Why haven\'t we received any contact from them?!”
｢I-I\'ll check right away!｣
Cursing under his breath, Min-Seok hurriedly left the office. As he sprinted toward the situation room, he barked out another command to his subordinate.
“That can wait! For now, bringing Lady Si-Hyun back is the top priority. Track the exploration team\'s route and input the coordinates. Send a transport vessel to that location. Understood?”
｢Understood!｣
Si-Hyun had found the artifacts yesterday and was on her way back. Considering the distance, it would take at least a week, even if she hurried.
‘If the Star Union catches her, we’re done for!’
Thanks to numerous modifications, this ship was considerably armed, but it wasn\'t enough to face the elite fleet. It couldn\'t even guarantee victory against the elite fleet’s reconnaissance unit.
By the time Min-Seok reached the situation room, a small spacecraft had already been launched toward the White Star.
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[Z ZZ ZZ (Anything left?)]
In the now-empty cavern, I asked Adhai. She circled the cavern on her strong, deer-like legs.
｢That｣｢was the last one｣｢no more left｣
Knowing that the elite fleet was on its way, we had hurriedly begun preparations to leave. While PS-111 inspected the ship, Adhai and I headed to the Gallagon nest.
Upon arriving, we went around waking all the Gallagons and explained the situation. We told them that an incredibly powerful enemy was coming and that we needed to escape.
I expected the process of convincing them to take quite some time, so I purposely moved quickly, but surprisingly, the Gallagons offered little resistance. The moment they heard Adhai’s words, they immediately began preparing to leave.
From that point, everything proceeded smoothly.
The Green and White Gallagons carried the young Blue Gallagons on their backs and flew to the ship. I, along with the Black Gallagon, Ham Ort, transported the Blue Gallagons as well.
After moving the Gallagons, the next task was to transport the eggs. More than 50 eggs were stored within the Dragon\'s nest.
Gallagon eggs cannot hatch if exposed to cold temperatures for too long, so Ham Ort and I, who were the largest and fastest fliers, took on the task of moving them.
Six hours had passed since we began the repeated trips back and forth, carrying the eggs.
Now, the only ones left were the seven eggs I currently held. I extended all my eroding tendrils, each gripping an egg tightly, while I used the smaller arms on my chest to clutch the remaining one.
[ZZZ ZZZZZ ZZZZ ZZZZ (Since this is the last trip, let’s check everywhere else too.)]
｢Big Elder｣｢Thank you｣
Adhai expressed her gratitude as I carefully checked to ensure that no eggs were left behind.
Once a Gallagon hatches from these eggs and matures, it would become an additional force. If we were lucky, one might even grow into a Red Gallagon, just like Adhai.
Although I was only being thorough to avoid missing even a single egg, Adhai seemed to misunderstand, thinking I was being considerate because I cared deeply for the Gallagons.
‘No need to correct her.’
After leaving the egg storage nest, we decided to split up and check the surrounding caverns.
This area, being where the eggs were stored, was located in the deepest part of the dragon\'s nest. Aside from the indirect impressions I’d sensed through the nest, this was my first time visiting this place in person.
I walked along the natural pathway formed by hardened minerals, eggs still in my grasp. Entering a nearby cave chamber, I found only traces of where eggs had once been stored. It was clear that Ham Ort had already been here.
‘Let’s check just one more spot before heading out.’
The final destination was a massive cavern located deeper inside than the egg storage room. As I rounded the bend in the passageway, a brilliant light struck my eyes.
‘What is this?’
The light was emanating from the depths of the large cavern. As I stepped inside, I was stunned.
There was a sea of jewels.
‘…This is incredible.’
It was exactly what you’d expect from the Gallagons, who were modelled after Western Dragons.
This vast collection of precious metals clearly marked this place as Odd Grad\'s lair.
‘Gallagons do have a fondness for rare minerals.’
In myths, dragons hoard jewels out of greed, but the Gallagons collect them for a slightly different reason.
They prefer metals with unique properties, such as Moonsilver, which amplifies psychic power, or Novametal, a key material used in the cores of the Thunder God or imperial warships. Their tendency to hoard these materials likely stems from their vulnerability to energy shortages during their youth, which developed into a kind of compulsion.
Anyway, the metals in Odd Grad’s lair were all unrefined chunks of rare metals. Some still contained significant amounts of energy, while others had been drained, turning into ordinary gemstones.
‘If I weren’t an Amorph, I’d be losing my mind right now.’
Even selling just half of these metals would be enough to buy two or three planets. After admiring the sea of jewels for a moment, I picked up a few pieces of metal.
‘Mother of the Sky might need these.’
The place we were heading to after leaving this planet was quite important for both Mother of the Sky and me. For me, it was about evolution, and for her, it was about ascending to the next stage of deification.
‘We’ll need all the resources we can get until we achieve our goal.’
Since I was already carrying the eggs, I couldn\'t pick up many. I used the pincers on my tail to firmly grip the metal chunks.
‘Alright, time to head ou—huh?’
Just as I was about to leave, something caught my eye.
Nestled among the jewels was a diamond-shaped stone.
‘What’s that?’
The other metals were still rough and unrefined, but this stone was different. It looked exceptionally smooth, as if it had been meticulously crafted. Its surface was covered with tiny, intricate letters and patterns.
‘A stele?’
I picked up the diamond-shaped stone—or rather, the stele. No matter how I looked at it, it appeared to be something created by a civilization.
‘Why would Odd Grad have an item like this?’
Thinking about its artificial nature, I recalled something else.
The ring that concealed emotions which Odd Grad had possessed. That, too, wasn’t something a Gallagon would typically have.
‘I’ll have to check it out once I return to the ship.’
Odd Grad’s ring was currently stored in the sample preservation area on the ship. He had taken it off when consuming a genetic sample and hadn’t paid any further attention to it since.
With the diamond-shaped stele in hand, I exited the cavern. As I did, I heard the sound of Adhai running from the passage ahead.
[ZZZZ (Adhai?)]
｢Big Elder!｣｢Something’s wrong!｣
[ZZ (What is it?)]
｢Little Elder｣｢has come｣｢to this place｣
Number 26 had arrived?
Just as I was about to ask what she meant, a familiar wave touched the tendrils of my monstrous form.
｢Big Bro! Your friend says to hurry and come out!｣
It was unmistakably the psychic wave of Number 26. It had come near the Dragon’s nest.
‘Why all of a sudden?’
Something bad had clearly happened. I hurried out of the nest with Adhai.
As soon as we emerged, what greeted us was a massive hunk of steel—a colossal warship hovering over the cliffs surrounding the nest.
It was the Screamer support vessel, a Jax Alpha-class battleship seized from Pyra Eleven.
‘Don’t tell me…’
There was only one reason PS-111 would urgently bring the ship all the way here—the scouting fleet of the Star Union\'s elite task force had entered this star system.
‘They arrived faster than expected!’
PS-111 had estimated that the vanguard would take about 18 hours to arrive, but that prediction was completely off.
‘Great Elder!’
The Great Elder must have intervened. It was clear he took some measures to ensure the elite fleet moved as quickly as possible.
Adhai and I flew up and boarded the ship. As we entered the hangar, the Green Gallagons greeted us.
[ZZZ ZZZZ ZZZ (Deliver these eggs to Number 26.)]
｢Understood.｣
After handing over the items we had collected to the Green Gallagons, I quickly rushed to the command room.
Upon entering, I found PS-111, linked to the ship, waiting alongside Mother of the Sky.
“What’s going on?”
“The scouting unit entered the star system sooner than I anticipated. They will encircle this planet within 10 minutes.”
“Anything else unusual?”
This time, it was Mother of the Sky who answered instead of PS-111.
｢They brought a Warp Finder.｣
A Warp Finder is a device that can trace where someone has jumped to by tracking the residual energy left behind for a short period. Even if we entered faster-than-light travel right now, they would catch up to us in no time.
“How large is the enemy force?”
“Thirty X10-class medium destroyers, three XAX-5-class fast battleships, and numerous patrol ships.”
That’s quite a sizable force for a scouting unit. They’re clearly well-prepared to finish me off.
‘It would take quite a while to annihilate them all.’
If we deployed all the Gallagons at our disposal, it wouldn\'t be impossible to obliterate the scouting fleet. The problem, however, was the time it would take.
They arrived a third of the time sooner than PS-111 had estimated. It’s highly possible the elite fleet might also arrive much earlier than anticipated.
‘Maybe that scouting fleet is just meant to stall for time.’
They knew that I could corrode and take control of ships. They might even suspect that I’ve already gained spaceflight capabilities. If this were a game, that’s the assumption they would make.
Thus, they might have assigned the Warp Finder to the scouting fleet, intending to lure me into a fight. I wouldn’t know which ship carries the Warp Finder, so I would have to destroy all of them to avoid being tracked.
‘And that would naturally cause a delay.’
Even if I managed to annihilate the enemy unit and escape afterward, if they gained enough time to track my traces, that alone would be beneficial for them.
‘A Warp Finder can trace movements for up to 30 minutes.’
The elite fleet would likely arrive around that same timeframe.
In other words, we need to destroy the enemy fleet within 30 minutes if we’re to escape their pursuit.
‘Normally, that’s how it would have to be….’
However, there’s no PS-111, the genius mutant Screamer, on their side. And they have no idea how many Gallagons are packed aboard this ship.
I looked at PS-111.
“They brought a Warp Finder, you said?”
“Yes.”
“Then, can you identify which ships have them?”
“I’ve confirmed that there are five ships carrying the device.”
“Let me know before we engage with them.”
“Understood.”
｢You’re not…?｣
Mother of the Sky, realizing the implication of my question, reacted in shock.
[ZZZ ZZ ZZZ ZZZZ ZZZ ZZ (We’ll eliminate those five ships as quickly as possible and get out of here.)]
｢…Won’t there be a shortage of time?｣
[ZZZ ZZ ZZZ ZZZZ ZZZ ZZ ZZZZZ (We have no choice. If we don’t deal with them here, it’ll only get worse.)]
I’ve spent my life on the run, always chased by time.
So battles with time limits aren’t anything new to me.
‘I’ll finish this within 25 minutes, at most.’
The target is the five ships carrying the Warp Finders. If I destroy them within 25 minutes, it’s my victory.
With that in mind, I left the command room.
This will be the final battle before we leave this planet.
[Proofreader – Draxx]