Became an Evolving Space Monster

Chapter 274:
Chapter 274:

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”Second Command fully sealed. Activating shields.”

”All VIPs in the banquet hall have been evacuated to the underground bunker. Evacuation of upper-level VIPs is in progress.”

In the central control room, dozens of androids, each with cables connected to the backs of their heads, were managing the Second Command. Montana Marcio, the master of the fortress, stood behind them with a nervous expression, watching the robots at work.

These androids were all high-end models produced by the Star Union. Originally designed as assistants for ship computers, they had been modified for fortress management.

Even with the Marcio Cartel’s resources, it wasn’t easy to find skilled personnel capable of managing an orbital settlement. People with that level of knowledge and expertise rarely crossed over to the fringes of space.

So Montana had spent a fortune to purchase a number of high-spec androids from the Star Union, along with a vast array of weaponry for them to manage.

”Anti-air shock cannons and defense railguns activated and fully loaded.”

”Psychic-based attacks have been deemed ineffective. Switching ammunition.”

”Large-caliber, high-velocity shock rounds and scatter missiles are being loaded.”

”Patrol ships under the command of the Second Command are also being rearmed with the same specifications.”

The androids were proving their worth, swiftly responding to the crisis. Though the fortress cannons had been neutralized, they immediately brought out alternative defenses.

Watching this, Montana felt a mix of relief and unease. Relief that his judgement had been correct, and yet, the anxiety refused to disappear.

’Damn it! If this operation had gone well, I was planning to leave this place.’

Recently, unsettling rumours had been circulating—Outer Spacers becoming more active, major cartels suddenly disappearing. In such uncertain times, the control rights over Kesha Arma, which he had obtained through bribes, felt all the more unstable.

His plan was to use the profits from brokering the auction to buy a small planet within the territory of the MegaCorp. If he could operate in a legal zone, the protection of the MegaCorp would be easier to secure, and naturally, his safety would be guaranteed.

But that plan had fallen apart completely.

Some unknown entity was turning his crew into grotesque monsters. Whether it was some Outer Spacer creature or an experimental subject brought in by a deranged megacorp client, he couldn’t tell.

Whatever it was, it had already cost him dearly, and now, his very life was on the line.

’...Should I prepare to escape?’

Kesha Arma, orbiting the planet, had one other means of escape besides the military port. A way to reach the planet itself, right above them.

Montana contemplated this last resort as he stared at the monitors in the central control room.

On the screens, his subordinates were running around, frantically preparing for battle.

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Three cylindrical pillars were visible from anywhere inside the fortress.

One of the three pillars supporting Kesha Arma—the Second Command—was fully armed and waiting for us.

‘Those barrier walls are tough.’

If the command is breached, the fortress would be done for, so naturally, the walls protecting it had to be equally robust.

The barrier was made from a blend of blacksilver, designed to dampen psychic power, and various high-strength metals, making it difficult to penetrate. My psychic breath or acidic breath could eventually break through, but it would take time.

‘But there’s no need for that.’

The longer I drag this out, the more likely my weaknesses will be exposed to the enemy. While my body is strong, I don’t intend to take unnecessary hits.

As I always say, frontal assaults don’t suit an Amorph.

While the command center was preoccupied with other enemies, I descended to the ground. Folding the large membrane of my wings into the empty carapace of my arm, I lowered my head, bringing my snout close to the ground.

‘It should be around here.’

Using my auxiliary limbs to feel the ground, I stopped in front of a building whose wall had collapsed. The layout of the fortress had changed from the game, but this seemed right.

I swung my wing-arm, smashing the wall and causing the entire building to collapse. Then, I opened my mouth wide over the debris.

The fungal gland deep inside my throat activated, spewing a large amount of acidic fluid. The green liquid not only engulfed the rubble but also dug into the ground.

The enemy still didn’t know what I was up to. Some blind shock cannons were launched in my direction, but I wasn’t concerned.

After all, 26 was with me.

「I’ll clear the way so they can’t bother you, Big One.」

It, who had been perched on my head, smashed more buildings and lifted the debris into the air. The incoming projectiles exploded as they collided with the spinning obstacles in midair.

‘Such a clever one.’

Having spent so much time together, it was in sync with me.

Under 26’s protection, I continued my excavation work. After expending all the liquid from the fungal gland, I used the cannons on my back to launch spores filled with explosive fluid deeper inside.

‘But this isn’t the end.’

Compared to the underground storage, this area needs to be dug much deeper.

The tentacles, draped over the back of my carapace and down to my neck like a mane, swayed in sync with my will. The psychic energy they gathered condensed before my snout, taking form.

A blazing, violet sphere—like a sun—ignited, and a massive flame shot through the hole I had drilled. The sheer intensity of the firepower caused the once-solid metal floor to crack open.

Not only that, but the ground around me began to tremble as if an earthquake had struck. Even the intact buildings collapsed, and from the cracked ground, the flames of psychic power surged upward like molten lava.

‘Good.’

The intense psychic flames, which had incinerated even Apex creatures, gradually subsided.

From the blackened pit, thick smoke rose. Amid the acrid fumes caused by chemical reactions, my auxiliary organ picked up a familiar scent.

The scent of humans in fear. It was a signal that the pit was close to my target.

‘This is the weak point of the command center’s shielding.’

The shielding wall protects the entire cylindrical command center protruding from the surface. However, this means that underground structures, like bunkers, are left unprotected.

If the enemy’s wall is too strong, I can always find a way around it.

‘In the game, some people went so far as to coat the entire underground with the same shielding material, but...’

Pirates who bend over backward just to buy a railgun wouldn’t go that far.

Even if the enemy tried to do that, I could still find ways to breach it. I simply chose not to, as it wasn’t necessary right now.

I reactivated the Messenger of Mass Confusion, which had been cancelled when I fired the psychic breath. Mutants within a 500-meter radius responded to the pulse of my psychic waves. Some, who had been frantically attacking the command center’s shielding wall, were drawn to my guidance and leapt into the pit.

I, too, along with 26, plunged into the abyss.

Below us lies the bunker, and those who believe it to be the safest place.

Chaos is about to descend upon them.