Chapter 106

Chapter 106 [Translator – Kie] [Proofreader – Kawaii] Chapter 106 ‘It’s a small campsite.’ As the deceased pilot described, the scale of the campsite wasn’t that large. When combining the roaming personnel and those detected by the auxiliary organ, there were only around 10 people. However, the issue wasn’t the number of individuals. ‘There’s a walker.’ A bipedal, open-type weapon system, standing 6 meters tall, lay beside the tent at the campsite. The walker was a robot weapon used by the StarUnion. The model present at the campsite was a light walker, mainly used for reconnaissance and as infantry support. Despite its open design providing limited defense, it compensated with storm guns in both hands, making its firepower formidable. ‘There are no cyborgs at the campsite.’ Walkers require a cyborg to operate, connecting with a special device called a brain connector to control the machine with their mind. Judging by the absence of the faint electronic waves typical of cyborgs in the vicinity, it seemed like someone had modified the walker for human use. Moreover, the campsite’s walker had a storm gun only in the left hand, with the right arm replaced by a crane-like mechanical device, likely modified for resource collection and item transport. ‘After attacking so recklessly, they seem confident.’ Pirates operating even modified walkers on a cult cruiser – that was unexpected. If they had walkers at a small campsite, there likely were many more near the headquarters or leader’s dock. Besides, the extent of their arsenal was still unknown. ‘They’re certainly overflowing with confidence.’ With this level of firepower, they would be classified as a top cartel even in the game. Although they are enemies, I acknowledged their strength. ‘But that doesn’t mean I can’t defeat them.’ Summoning the tooth fairy swarm, I quietly descended from the tree. As I approached the campsite, pirates with lit torches stood guard, vigilant. After sending the tooth fairy swarm to the opposite side of the pirates, I prompted them to make noise. “Huh?” The moment he turned his head upon hearing rustling sounds. “Wha...?!” I grabbed his head with corrosive tentacles and pulled him sharply, leaving only the gun he was holding in that spot. “Where did this guy go?” “Hey! Did he go to pee?” A moment later, two other pirates approached. I aimed Spine Projectile Organ at the one behind them. “Huh?” I grabbed the collapsed pirate by his throat and approached the other one. “Huh? What?” When he turned at the sound of footsteps, a bone axe swung down on his shoulder. Struck by the bone axe, he collapsed on the ground. Stepping inside from the warmth radiating from the spilled entrails on the ground, I entered the campsite. In the center of the camp, a pirate sat by the bonfire, grilling meat. He had plugs in his ears so he remained oblivious to what was happening behind him. Approaching him quietly until I reached right behind him, I opened my mouth wide and engulfed his head entirely. The startled pirate struggled, but his resistance was short-lived. When I forcefully lifted his head with tension in his jaw, a cultist pirate walked out of another tent. “Huh?” Gurgle! The cultist, adorned with goat horns, stood still as if unable to comprehend the situation. I swallowed the upper half of the pirate while swaying my tail. “Grrrrr....” With thorn spikes embedded in his neck, he collapsed, making a deflating sound. “Uh...ah...ahhh!” Then, with screams, another pirate emerged from a different tent, covered in blood. While I was dealing with the pirates, the tooth fairy swarm had sneaked into another tent and attacked the pirates inside. The pirate, bleeding, tried to escape upon seeing me, but the tooth fairies didn’t let him go. With carnivorous fleas leaping onto him, he couldn’t bear the assault and collapsed on the ground. “Ahhhh!” “What the hell is that noise... Ugh?!” Hearing the screams of their comrade, the other pirates peeked out from their tents and were astonished by the slaughterhouse I had created. Swallowing the chef pirate and charging towards the pirate inside the tent, the force packed in the 5-meter structure was truly frightening. The tent shattered like bowling pins hit by a bowling ball, and the pirates inside crumpled instantly. While their comrades were torn apart, a pirate who had been moving stealthily successfully boarded a walker. “You bastard! You’re gone now!” The pirate on the walker wore a peculiar equipment. It resembled reinforced armor but covered only the head and chest, with multiple devices resembling plugs attached to the back of the neck. ‘He’s connecting with a brain connector using that.’ Such equipment didn’t exist in the game. It was quite interesting, but that was something to check later. As the 6-meter walker rose from the ground, aiming its storm gun at me, the pirate controlling it had a triumphant expression. He probably believed that the depleted uranium rounds loaded in that storm gun would tear me apart. However, his hopes would never come true. The radio waves emanating from the panel on my back disrupted the walker’s electrical signals, causing it to stop functioning. “Huh? Wha...what’s happening?” As the once agile walker stopped working, the pirate shouted in a bewildered voice. The effects of the electromagnetic interference weren’t long-lasting, so I extended my combat arm and pulled him out of the cockpit. Thud! The male deity, known as the Father of the Earth, was beheaded by the pirate leader, while the female deity, known as the Mother of the Sky, was currently captured as a prisoner. But the pirates didn’t disclose these facts. It was more enjoyable for them to see the Wolves despairing in vain. Leaving the camp and surveying the scene of looting, the assistant was approached by one pirate. The pirate was holding a female Wolf and a young Wolf. “What should we do with this Wolf kid?” “Please, spare this child!” “Not the leader’s taste. Deal with it.” “Wa...wait... Nooo!” The pirate killed the young Wolf and dragged away its mother. Despite being the leader of the ‘Humanity’ Cartel, who is a woman herself, she has a strong aversion to other women and ugly men, so they are killed very cruelly. Being humiliated by subordinate pirates here and burning to death seemed more merciful than what they were experiencing. In fact, the Mother of the Sky, captured as a prisoner, was undergoing such terrifying torture from the pirates. Of course, trying to explain that fact to a Wolf who lost a child would lack credibility. Nevertheless, beside the assistant who considered it an act of mercy, another subordinate approached. “What did the boss say?” “He said to send some kids. Send the ones with nothing much to do.” “Got it.” After the subordinate left, the assistant returned to work. To find captives to be presented to the leader, they needed to diligently search around until the night ended. An hour after the assistant met Dylan, ten heavily armed pirates boarded a transport ship heading towards Camp 17. Eight of them wore intermediate reinforced suits, while two were on walkers. The walkers were equipped with plasma launchers, and all eight pirates were armed with gauss rifles. The level of armament was sufficient to handle a more formidable opponent than the pirates had anticipated around the camp. “When they return, there won’t be any decent ones left for us to eat, right?” “That’s right. Or we could share it with the others.” “Well, eating them afterward feels like eating corpses.” All ten of them were forcibly conscripted, so there was a lot of discontent, but there was nothing they could do. Their boss, the cult leader, had a very cruel disposition. As the transport ship arrived in the airspace near Camp 17, which was prepared by the pirates in advance, the assistant spoke to Dylan an hour later. “Check for life reactions in the vicinity.” “Nothing particularly unusual.” Their transport ship was equipped with a bioscanner suitable for use on warships. The Humanity Cartel possessed genetic information for almost all dangerous organisms on this planet. Therefore, the pirates could easily check whether there were dangerous animals in the vicinity. After running the bioscanner once and determining that it was safe, they disembarked and headed for Camp 17. Until that moment, they had no idea what had happened at the camp. At most, they thought it might be a communication failure due to a malfunction. However, what awaited them was not something as simple as a communication failure. Instead of the warm glow of a campfire and the noisy singing of pirates, cold darkness and silence filled Camp 17. “Something’s strange, isn’t it?” “Where did everyone go?” Only then did the pirates realize that something was seriously wrong, and they began to be on guard around them. One of the pirates, using the light on his helmet, discovered ominous traces. “Look at this!” “What...gasp?!” It was a massive amount of bloodstains. The blood that had been scattered in the middle of the camp continued into the forest. “Everyone, prepare for combat!” The extremely tense pirates raised their weapons. They advanced into the forest with a walker at the forefront. The seemingly endless bloodstains gradually diminished until they were cut off in front of a certain tree. “Did they fly up into the sky?” “Utterly nonsensical. No carnivorous animal comes down near this area.” “Well, that’s true... huh?” A drop of water fell onto the shoulder of one of the pirates. Thinking it was rain, he wiped it off, only to realize it wasn’t water. In the light of the helmet, his palm was covered in blood. “...” Everyone’s gaze fixed on his bloody hand. Swallowing hard, he slowly raised his head. And there, above him. The ‘companions’ they were looking for were there. “Get in touch with the boss immediately!” “Rather than that, prepare the transport ship!” “Transport ship! Respond! It’s an emergency! Fly here right away!” Even the ruthless pirates were horrified by the scene in front of them. Skinless pirates were hanging from the trees.