I Became an Evolving Space Monster
Chapter 419

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[Translator – Seraph]

[Proofreader – Draxx]

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Chapter 419

A ‘Sinister Mimic’ trait made by combining only negative effects.

According to the status box, this trait has two main abilities.

The first is camouflage.

The tentacles growing all over its body can change their position, shape, and pigmentation to perfectly imitate the appearance of surrounding objects. The level of disguise is quite high. Even the mini screamer MPS-03 couldn’t tell I was right in front of it.

‘One big advantage is that the transformation holds even while moving.’

It would be useful for ambushing enemies or luring them into traps. If it works the same way in space, it could disguise itself as a chunk of rock or cling to asteroids, then strike from behind.

‘I’ll check that out later.’

For now, the tentacle-based camouflage is a sort of side effect — like the ‘Horizon of Nightmares’ trait, which grants corrosive tentacles usable as weapons.

The real power of the Sinister Mimic lies elsewhere.

In the ‘Molting Organ.’

The description says it can create new body parts or organs by taking the advantages of powerful prey. There is only one instance in my entire status box where the phrase ‘powerful prey’ appears.

It’s the ‘Mark of Formidable Foe’ — a sign created by stealing the player’s perks. The Sinister Mimic is related to this.

‘I wonder how it will be applied?’

It might create an organ with effects similar to the Mark of Formidable Foe trait, or it might create a new organ with a completely different ability. It has to be one or the other. The former would be preferable, but the latter changes things quite a bit.

It could create an organ more powerful than the perks themselves, or conversely, it might produce something useless.

According to the status box, the trait applied to the Molting Organ cannot be changed for 30 days. That means even if the result is worthless, I have to live with it for at least a month.

‘Whatever happens, I’ll have to test it myself to be sure.’

Currently, I have five Mark of Formidable Foe traits.

‘Plunderer's Amorphous Polyhedron,’ ‘Abyssal Hue,’ ‘Shape Dominator,’ ‘Starlight Coordinates,’ and ‘Hydra Division.’

‘Let’s leave Abyssal Hue for later.’

It’s a high-risk, high-reward trait, so it’s not suitable for the first trial. I focused on the other four.

‘Maybe I’ll try Shape Dominator for the experiment.’

Shape Dominator enhances traits that influence the thoughts of intelligent species. It’s always active, so it doesn’t stand out much.

‘But that probably means fewer side effects. Let’s go with this.’

｢‘Shape Dominator’ has been set as the trait for the ‘Molting Organ.’ Reanalysis complete. Proceeding to transformation and application.｣

After selecting the trait to apply to the Molting Organ, a brief message appeared.

Moments later, the center of my head felt slightly itchy. Scratching with my nails didn’t make it go away. The transformation caused by the Molting Organ had begun.

‘It’s happening on my head?’

Specifically, the two larger horns on my head itched. Something was clearly changing there.

The itchy horns split, and new horns grew from inside.

Checking with my auxiliary organ beneath my jaw, the structure was quite unique. Several horns twisted together in a spiral to form one body.

｢Grrrk?｣

｢Grrr?｣

Similar mutations occurred on the left and right sides of my head. The horns growing where eyes should be became the focus.

Once the transformation was complete, a new status box appeared.

｢*Molted part: Fragrant Horns of the Form (Shape Dominator), unspecified｣

‘Fragrant Horns of the Form?’

Only the name of the newly born — or rather upgraded — horns was listed, with no other explanation.

‘The complex structure suggests they might have special abilities...’

Maybe they’ll respond if I use the traits enhanced by Shape Dominator. I activated my usual camouflage organ.

From tiny pores on the outer shell, chemicals that disrupt the senses of intelligent beings were released. As the camouflage organ activated, the Fragrant Horns of the Form responded immediately.

‘Hmm?’

The tangled horns untwisted and stretched upward. Their branched shape resembled the branches of an ancient tree.

From the tiny holes densely covering the spread horns, invisible chemicals were secreted. They felt similar, but not identical, to the chemicals produced by the camouflage organ.

‘Do they strengthen the camouflage effect?’

Since I’m not affected by my own camouflage organ, I don’t know exactly how it applies. I stood up and walked over to the captured pirate before entering my cocoon.

“Get up.”

“H-hey?!”

The pirate lieutenant, Ventris, was unconscious, stuck in slime. He suddenly jolted awake and looked up in shock. The moment he saw me, his body began to shake uncontrollably.

“How... how did you...?!”

‘You all?’

It’s understandable he’s scared, but his wording was odd. I crouched down and brought my head close to his.

“Please don’t kill me... I don’t want to die... please...”

“Quiet.”

“......”

“What do I look like to you?”

His eyes darted wildly among my three heads.

“I-I see three...”

“Three?”

“Yes, yes. My three dead subordinates are moving exactly like this.”

Regardless of my size or appearance, the camouflage organ’s effect only works on one intelligent being. It uses the genetic information of a single intelligent creature to create the chemicals that disrupt senses.

Unless the genetic data is replaced, it’s impossible to mimic three forms at once.

‘But the Fragrant Horns of the Form are eliminating that drawback.’

The substance secreted by the Fragrant Horns of the Form Gland was producing the same effect as the Mimicry Organ. That must be why Ventris said she saw three humans when looking at me.

Mimicking multiple beings… not bad at all.

It’s not without its weaknesses, but I can compensate by combining it with other traits.

The first trial’s a success.

I can designate up to two Trait Marks to the Molting Organ. I still have one slot left.

I should think a bit more before choosing the last one.

Now that I’ve confirmed how it works, it’s best to think carefully about the second choice. Or perhaps leave it unassigned for now, just in case.

That concluded today’s experiment.

Satisfied with the results, I immediately left the nest.

Rain fell softly over the city. Above, Hiveformers cloaked in human skins wandered about.

‘She said the port, right?’

The Mother of the Sky had arrived earlier than planned and was waiting at the port.

I extended my wing-arms. The membrane folded inside them stretched out stiffly, and my body shot upward in an instant.

Even with my altered body structure, flight was no issue. Flapping my wide wings, I soared toward the port.

Breaking through the rain clouds, I arrived at the port in no time and landed on the runway my clones had smashed apart earlier.

‘Where is she…?’

As I walked across the rain-soaked runway, I sensed a small presence moving in the distance—approaching quickly. That had to be the Mother of the Sky.

‘Hm?’

But her behavior was strange. She was wearing the Obsidian Arms, a battlesuit exclusive to the wolf-folk, and wielding the ceremonial golden spear. It was clearly a battle-ready stance.

‘Don’t tell me… there are still pirates left?’

Just as the thought crossed my mind, she hurled the spear. It turned into a flash of light and struck the right side of my head.

｢Die!｣

｢Grrr?｣

“Wait!”

The griffon wolf, poised for a follow-up strike, froze at the sound of my voice.

｢That voice… Amorph?｣

Her vivid amber eyes darted back and forth across my heads in confusion. That’s when I realized—she was being affected by the combined effect of my Fragrant Horns of the Form Gland and Mimicry Organ.

‘Ah…’

I immediately deactivated the Fragrant Horns of the Form. The antler-like horns, which had branched outward, returned to their original spiral shape.

Freed from the confusing stimulus, the Mother of the Sky widened her eyes in shock as she looked at me.

｢What was that just now?｣

“I should be asking you that. Why did you attack me?”

｢Three pirates in powered suits were running toward me—what was I supposed to do, just stand there?｣

She wasn’t wrong. Without knowledge of the enhanced Mimicry Organ, she had every reason to misinterpret what she saw.

Still, launching an immediate attack was unusual. So was her prickly demeanor. It wasn’t like her—she was normally calm and composed.

Maybe she realized that herself, as she let out a small sigh.

｢…Sorry. I acted too rashly. Is your head okay?｣

I pulled the golden spear out of the right side of my head with one of my wing-arms.

Must’ve absorbed a lot of blood—it’s embedded pretty deep.

Still, thanks to my thick cranial carapace, the injury wasn’t severe. My regenerative ability could easily handle it.

“I’m fine, but what’s going on? Why were you like that just now?”

｢It’s… Just follow me for a moment.｣

She took the spear from me, stowed it away, and ran off without another word.

I followed her to a small warehouse on the outskirts of the port. It looked ordinary from a distance, but the closer I got, the more a strange smell pricked at my auxiliary sensors.

The source of that smell became clear the moment I stepped inside.

On medical beds placed across the warehouse floor lay ten young wolf-folk. All were emaciated, covered in wounds, and barely alive. They looked like they were only clinging to life by a thread.

Medical devices were hooked up beside them, injecting healing fluid into their bodies—the source of the strange scent.

“Who are they?”

｢Survivors from the wolf-tribe on U-08.｣

“Survivors?”

It sounded like something—or someone—had attacked them suddenly.

Come to think of it, MPS-03 told me the Mother of the Sky had arrived here earlier than expected.

｢Before I got there, the Shino Group’s cartel hit U-08.｣

“They attacked there too?”

｢Yeah. I think someone with them knows how to track Arcane Orca—that damned pirate leading the others.｣

The Mother of the Sky wasn’t the first to devise a way to track Arcane Orca. She had learned the method as a mercenary working under the first tracker team to try it.

“Didn’t you say that the tracker team fell apart quickly?”

｢Yeah. It didn’t last long, and the clan members all disbanded.｣

“Then odds are high that one of the mercenaries from that group became a ranker in the Shino Group.”

｢…There are a few who come to mind, but I’m not sure yet.｣

I looked down at the wolf cubs lying on the beds.

Now I understand why she brought the survivors here.

They were attacked. They might know something useful.

I had the means to save the dying wolves.

First, I’d heal them—then, I’d hear what they had to say.

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[Translator – Seraph]

[Proofreader – Draxx]

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