160

Ep. 160

If Megacorp has the Hulk Mutant, Star Union has the Screamer.

The two are quite similar in that they forcibly modify criminals and use them as combat weapons, and boast a hideous appearance.

The difference is that the Hulk Mutant is seen more as an allied mercenary than an enemy, while the Screamer appears mainly as an enemy.

Unlike the Hulk Mutant, who is less intelligent but has self-consciousness and is guaranteed a certain degree of freedom, Screamer has only an intact mind and his body is controlled by machines.

'It's literally a mechanical prison.'

Although his name is 'The Screamer', he cannot even breathe properly unless the life management AI in his body gives permission.

The same goes for the screamer that runs towards me while making a loud noise. As soon as it saw me, it shouted that it had found an enemy, but that was just a line automatically output according to the specific situation input to the AI.

The thing that got so close that you could see the prominent veins on its pale skin swung its front paw. Feet with sharp claws, like those of a spider, fly in to tear off flesh.

I swung my fighting arm to counter his attack. As usual, I thought that this time his feet would easily bounce off.

but.

With a loud thud, its claws pierced the carapace of my arm.

'huh?'

It wasn't deeply embedded, but I was surprised. Since becoming a semi-adult, this is the first person since Muriel to have punctured my carapace through hand-to-hand combat.

That wasn't the end. Its back was bent in a strange way, and two metal feet on its back were aimed at my eyes.

I quickly turned my head, blocked the claws with my carapace, and used the torque generated by twisting my body to swing my tail wildly.

Its thick-coated tail sweeps the floor. The claw at the end collides with it. The one hit by Swamp King's mace was thrown against the hallway wall.

｢Kuuu｣｢Kuuuu｣

I swung with the intention of crushing it with one blow, but the guy did not die. Other than a few bent metal frames, it looked fine.

'Why is it so hard?'

I have fought against Screamer to the point of exhaustion. I have a clear understanding of what level they are.

However, the defense and attack power of this screamer in front of me were beyond standard.

'It's not because I'm weakened by the clever underdog effect.'

It is true that its combat ability has decreased as its body has shrunk, but even taking that into account, that mechanical beast is abnormally strong.

'It's been upgraded.'

The screamer, which opened the street of Kuou, was wary of me with a rough breath.

After one exchange of offense and defense, he seems to have realized that I am not an easy enemy, so he is cautious in his movements.

I also carefully searched for enemies.

'I don't know what more features may have been added.'

I think it's unlikely, but he may be hiding a means of threatening my life. So, you have to be careful and fight.

At that time, the guy rushed at me again.

This time he didn't run up the hallway, but instead ran up and down the walls and ceiling. By slamming its six metal legs into the walls and ceiling.

'It's probably done to confuse people.'

I can also climb walls. Like him, I clung to the wall and ceiling and ran towards him.

The distance between us quickly narrows. Just before colliding, it raises both front paws high.

His target is my neck area. A weapon as sharp as an ice pick was aimed at my neck.

Instead of blocking his attack, I jumped from the ceiling. Its attack grazed the carapace on the back of my head.

The screamer didn't give up and tried to pounce on me and take my head.

Before that, my tail stopped him. It grabbed the animal's legs with the claws at the end of its tail. Just because the size has decreased does not mean that all of its power has disappeared. I strengthened my claws.

"Risk of damage to legs 1 and 2."

The guy let out a mechanical voice and tried to escape, but it was pointless resistance as he was held tightly. Its metal legs could not withstand the tightening force and broke. The guy's eyes widened as liquid spurted out from the tube connected to his broken leg.

｢Kuuuu｣

The guy's breathing becomes rough. I swung my fighting arms.

Then he gave up his captured legs. My attack ended in vain as the guy abandoned his legs and retreated.

The guy who took a few steps back bent his remaining leg and pushed back forcefully. A guy with a solid metal skeleton climbed onto my back. In that state, its legs tightened around the carapace of my neck and back like a noose.

I thought he was trying to kill me by strangling me, but that wasn't the case.

A long, thin tail, similar to that of a scorpion, protruded from the tail of the one who captured me. What makes it different from a scorpion is that it does not have a sting, but a rotating saw blade embedded in a triangular direction.

'Where!'

I left him hanging and hit my back hard in the hallway. With my weight on it, I hit it with all my might, so much so that the entire ship shook slightly.

｢Shock detection. "It cannot be recovered."

The impact crushed half of its body. The legs that were holding me lost strength.

Nevertheless, in a last-ditch effort, it cut off the carapace on the back of my head with its tail. As the carapace and saw blade collided, intense sparks flew and lit up the dark hallway.

'This is real!'

I grabbed its tail and swung it towards the wall like I was swinging a baseball bat. Mechanical parts and life-sustaining solutions were sticking out of the guy whose body was half stuck in the wall.

The messed up guy struggled with his legs trying to harm me in some way. As a finishing touch, I stabbed its body with the six horns on its head.

｢Queeee｣｢Haehae Haengdo East couple couple fire couple couple gaaaaaaa….｣｢Keeeek｣ The

life support AI controlling the guy fell silent after those words. The tubes attached to various parts of the body were all broken, the legs were all broken, and the tail was completely torn off and held in my hands.

Soon he spit out the piece of tube he was holding in his mouth. He had bloodshot eyes when he fought me, but he looked much more comfortable as he faced death.

"Thank you…"

He looked at me and lowered his head while saying something.

'phew.'

This is my first time seeing such a strong screamer. The battle wasn't long, but I suffered quite a bit of damage.

'I never thought it would damage the head carapace.'

Although it is a small scratch, it cannot be ignored. If you upgrade it further, a mass-produced weapon capable of inflicting fatal injuries even on subadult Amorphs will be created.

'The kids are in danger!'

There are at least three screamers on this ship. It's an opponent I can't easily defeat, but the kids will be even more difficult to deal with.

Moreover, unlike me, who has strong defense, No. 26 and Aadhai's defense is not that great. If you get cut by the rotating saw blade on its tail, you die.

I hurriedly left Screamer's body behind.

The sound of guns that had been loud in the hallway until I fought Screamer was no longer heard. That means the fight is already over. Thinking like that, I felt an uneasy feeling for some reason.

As I was running to find the nearest Aadhai, a fork in the road came up in front of me. If you turn into the corridor on the right from there, you will find Aadhai.

I increased my speed even further and ran quickly to check the hallway on the right.

There were many corpses lying there and the Mother of Heaven. Among the fallen corpses, a mangled Screamer was seen.

And one of the fallen creatures had large wings and a long tail.

'Aadhai!'

As soon as I saw Aadhai lying on the floor, my heart sank. I thought I got hit while fighting a Screamer, but he raised his head.

｢Tasteless!｣｢Really!｣｢Tasteless!｣

"I told you so. "It won't taste good."

"Me," "Friend," "Word," "Distrust," "Mistake."

Adhai scratched the tentacle that replaced his mouth with his front paw. The guy who was diligently shaking off the stuff from his tentacles found me.

｢Big adult｣｢Nice to meet you｣

｢Are you here?｣

[Zuzu zuzuzu (Is everyone okay?)]

｢Why are you so surprised? "Ah, is it because of this guy?"

The Mother of Heaven, who was picking hair with her beak, looked at me and responded as if it was no big deal.

"He was much stronger than the Screamer I knew. Looks like you had a fight too."

[Z(Yes)]

It looks like the Mother of Heaven is in charge of the screamer.

When I looked at Screamer's body, I saw that the head had been separated from the body. The Mother of Heaven must have beheaded him with her claws. Instead of targeting hard metal parts, it was aimed precisely at soft flesh parts.

[Zuzuzuz, zuzuzu, zuzuzu, zuzuzuzu (It looks like the metal part was strengthened, but it was done well)]

｢Huh? Have you checked yet?｣

[Zuzuzuzu (What do you mean?)]

She says something incomprehensible. She raised her front claws and pointed at the dead Screamer.

The area she was pointing at was the guy's neck. When I looked at the back of the neck, I saw traces of several failed attempts to cut it.

｢These guys' bodies are not like regular humans.｣

[Z(What?)]

｢Too strong for a human.｣

She lightly scratched Screamer's skin with her claws. A griffon's claws are very sharp, so even a light cut should result in pieces of flesh falling off.

However, only light scratches remained on Screamer's skin.

Originally, the Screamer's head and body were not much different from those of a regular cyborg. This is because the metal skeleton surrounding its body was strong and the biological tissue had not been modified separately.

Therefore, even in the game, the screamer's weak point is its weak torso. Depending on how the head was modified, there are cases where it appears wearing a helmet similar to a gas mask, so this should be an exception.

'Now that I think about it, the guy I fought with was also strong.'

Earlier, I hung the guy on his back and slammed him into the wall. Considering my strength, it would be normal for the body itself to be crushed, not just the tube and legs. However, rather than dying immediately, it gave me a good hit with its tail before dying.

Then there is only one answer.

｢If you are not a human enhanced through genetic manipulation….｣

[Zuzuzuzuzu (Hulk Mutant)]

She nodded silently.

'They made a Screamer out of a Hulk mutant.'

Actually, that's what I said, but I found it hard to believe it myself.

After all, Star Union and Megacorp are at war. It is not likely that key technologies, such as the Hulk Mutant production method, will flow to Star Union.

And even if you obtain the production method through intelligence, it is not easy to make it into a screamer right away.

'Star Union's level of genetic manipulation technology is not high.'

Except for clone technology, both technology and infrastructure are inferior to Megacorp in all other fields. Producing something simply because you have the technology is a different matter.

'Let's first check and see if No. 26 is safe….'

｢What? "What are the babies doing without me?"

At that time, a wave of waves came to me. It was number 26.

A popping sound was heard in the dark hallway, and soon the guy appeared.

Sky Mother and I were surprised to see No. 26.

"I brought you some food."

Thanks to its increased body size, the guy who filled about two-thirds of the aisle was holding on to two Screamers with the psychic power technique 'Binding'.

｢Kuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu ofaid yet Question Question Questionscollectcollect added stock added food added food Match food added

stock food stock food buy buy buy buy buy

buy Rammed Rammed Rampant Assessed Encyclopedia Although the metal skeleton and legs were all twisted like a twisted twist.

Aadhai, seeing this, shot a thought wave.

｢little adult｣｢that｣｢tasteless｣

｢really?｣

｢me｣｢tried it｣｢that｣｢gift｣｢unnecessary｣

｢Really? Then I have to throw it away.」

[Zuz zuzu zuzu zuzu (Wait. There is no need for that)]

As soon as Aadhai's thought wave ended, I saw the heads of the two Screamers bend strangely and quickly stopped No. 26.

[Zuzuzu zuzuzuzu zuzuzu (I have to grow up quickly, so I'll eat well)]

｢Is the big baby still growing up?｣

[Zu (Yes)]

｢Then the big baby will eat a lot and grow a lot!｣

[Zuzuzu (Thank you) ]

When No. 26 released the restraints, the screamers were spread out on the floor. They tried to move to attack No. 26, but they were unable to move because every single part of the metal legs was twisted.

'It looks like they didn't mix the black silver.'

If it had been a black silver alloy, No. 26 would not have been able to suppress it so easily. I stroked the body of the guy who was bigger than me as a compliment.

[Zuzuzu (good job)]

｢Yes!｣

The guy was happy, his body glowing softly.

After petting No. 26, I stood in front of the incapacitated Screamer.

'Let's check it right away.'

I have a useful tool for identifying unknown entities.

'Insight', one of the characteristics related to superpowers.

This trait, obtained by hunting a police officer named William in Space City, randomly displays information held by enemies.

'I just need to check the tribe name.'

When the insight was activated, a purple light flashed from my eyes, illuminating the dark hallway.

And a semi-transparent text box appeared in front of me.

｢Name: ■■■■

Species: Hulk Mutant

Status: Enhanced (Screamer treatment)

Equipment worn: ■■■■ ■■｣

The information confirmed through insight was as we predicted.

A screamer made from a Hulk mutant.

What does this mean?

'There are people who cooperate with both Star Union and Megacorp.'

The war between the two communities continued for more than hundreds of years. In fact, I have seen Megacorp's humans loathe machines.

Of course, we know that there are people in the upper echelons of Megacorp who earn credits by secretly selling their employees to Star Union.

However, leaking the recipe for making important war weapons is a completely different problem. If we lose the war, credit won't be an issue then.

'There is only one being who would do something like this.'

There are players who have created new screamers for both Megacorp and Star Union races.

And I have a rough guess as to who Star Union's players will be.

'You can't do this unless you're a member of the Mechanical Committee or higher.'

The highest member of the Mechanical Council can only be an android. Players cannot join.

So, the opponent is the highest power of Star Union, who surpasses the Machine Committee.

'Grand leader.'

The current Great Leader is a player who has a close relationship with Megacorp players.

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