My Children Swarm the Cosmos – Chapter 11

𝐅𝐫𝐞𝐞𝐝𝐨𝐦 𝐢𝐧 𝐚 𝐅𝐢𝐬𝐡𝐛𝐨𝐰𝐥 (1)

Darwin Foundation’s 470’s proposal to run away never sat right with me, to begin with. I would have died if I had betrayed humanity so recklessly.

If she hadn’t harbored any treachery, I would have betrayed her first. There would have been no telling what might have happened if I had run away with her.

The corpse of 470, pierced by tentacles, is suspended in the air, spilling blood. My torn body has been restored, and my head, covered in black armor, is still regenerating.

I access her brain again.

‘𝘟𝘦𝘯𝘰𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘢.’

Aside from that, there’s nothing particularly useful.

She was a Test Subject who had been ranked No. 2 in the overall rankings with just her Legion Control. It makes sense that she would have fewer abilities or information to absorb compared to the other Test Subjects.

━. . . 𝐎𝐜𝐭𝐨𝐛𝐞𝐫 𝟔, 𝟐𝟔𝟐𝟎, 𝐒𝐨𝐥𝐚𝐫 𝐂𝐚𝐥𝐞𝐧𝐝𝐚𝐫, 𝟗:𝟎𝟐 𝐏𝐌.

Anyway, I have passed the preliminary selection without a hitch. For now, I am satisfied with this.

━𝐖𝐞 𝐡𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐟𝐢𝐫𝐦𝐞𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐥𝐢𝐟𝐞 𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐯𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐞𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝐓𝐞𝐬𝐭 𝐒𝐮𝐛𝐣𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐬, 𝐞𝐱𝐜𝐞𝐩𝐭 𝐄𝐱𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐚𝐥 𝐒𝐮𝐛𝐣𝐞𝐜𝐭 𝟒𝟏𝟐, 𝐡𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐜𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐞𝐝.

𝘎𝘳𝘳𝘳𝘳𝘳𝘳. . . .

The Kabana that had torn my body apart just a moment ago was nuzzling its snout on the ground.

“It’s okay. You’re my child.”

The fear and anxiety I felt from the Kabana vanished at my words.

“It wasn’t your fault.”

𝘎𝘶𝘭𝘱. . . .

It was probably terrified that it had almost killed its master by falling for another leader’s wave.

━𝐓𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐜𝐥𝐮𝐝𝐞𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐟𝐢𝐧𝐚𝐥 𝐩𝐫𝐞𝐥𝐢𝐦𝐢𝐧𝐚𝐫𝐲 𝐬𝐞𝐥𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝟓𝐭𝐡 𝐛𝐚𝐭𝐜𝐡 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐜𝐡𝐢𝐦𝐞𝐫𝐚𝐳 𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐣𝐞𝐜𝐭.

I was the only one left alive. The fact that a human voice could be heard, probably the one who had been monitoring the preliminary selection from the beginning to the end, is proof of that.

𝘎𝘳𝘳𝘳𝘳𝘳𝘳. . . .

The Kabana nudges its snout towards me.

I reach out to it and pat its snout. The hard exoskeleton of the beast can be felt through the palm of my hand, and thoughts of what I had to do next come to mind.

━𝐓𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐤 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐡𝐚𝐫𝐝 𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐤. 𝐄𝐱𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐚𝐥 𝐒𝐮𝐛𝐣𝐞𝐜𝐭 𝟒𝟏𝟐, 𝐩𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐞 𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐜𝐞𝐞𝐝 𝐭𝐨 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐝𝐞𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐚𝐦𝐢𝐧𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐫𝐨𝐨𝐦 𝐢𝐧 𝐆𝐚𝐭𝐞 𝟏𝟏𝟐, 𝐬𝐨𝐮𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐭 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐢𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐠𝐫𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐝, 𝐚𝐟𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐝𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐨𝐲𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝐜𝐡𝐢𝐦𝐞𝐫𝐚𝐳 𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐢𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐠𝐫𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐝 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐟𝐚𝐢𝐥.

The humans of the Darwin Foundation have begun to use respectful language towards me. Perhaps they are now treating me as a full-fledged person. It’s not bad, for what it’s worth.

However,

“Do I really have to kill all the chimeraz in this training ground?”

I have 1,788 children under my command after absorbing 470’s collective consciousness just now. Including the chimeraz used as structures, there are easily over 2,000 of them.

For me to kill all these children who follow me as their master,

Do they honestly expect me to say yes to something like that?

━𝐏𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐞 𝐜𝐨𝐨𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐞.

If it’s a request to cooperate, not an order, then I should be able to refuse, shouldn’t I?

It’s about time that the Darwin Foundation, who has been watching my abilities and potential, learns to respect my wishes more.

My head is pounding from controlling so many children, but I have a legion of 1,788 and 100 colonies at my disposal right now.

“I’m just asking. Do I really have to kill all my children here?”

There was a short pause as if they were contemplating the answer.

━. . . 𝐎𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐰𝐢𝐬𝐞, 𝐰𝐞 𝐰𝐢𝐥𝐥 𝐡𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐧𝐨 𝐜𝐡𝐨𝐢𝐜𝐞 𝐛𝐮𝐭 𝐭𝐨 𝐢𝐧𝐜𝐢𝐧𝐞𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐫𝐞 𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐢𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐠𝐫𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐝. 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐜𝐡𝐢𝐦𝐞𝐫𝐚𝐳 𝐰𝐨𝐮𝐥𝐝 𝐬𝐮𝐟𝐟𝐞𝐫 𝐠𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐭𝐥𝐲 𝐛𝐞𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐲 𝐝𝐢𝐞, 𝐛𝐮𝐭 𝐢𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭’𝐬 𝐨𝐤𝐚𝐲 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐲𝐨𝐮, 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐧 𝐰𝐞 𝐬𝐡𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝐝𝐨 𝐣𝐮𝐬𝐭 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭.

So that’s how it’s going to be.

“. . . Very well.”

I regretted my actions of trying to turn against them, even if just for a moment. .

1,788. 100 colonies.

A measly legion like that, which could be easily reduced to dust by human firepower, what good would it be?

There are 74 billion humans ruling our galaxy with their advanced civilization.

“I will dispose of the remaining children now.”

It was foolish of me to rebel for a brief moment. Mother was right after all. My path in life was already set. It was to coexist with the most powerful species, the humans.

‘𝘐𝘵 𝘪𝘴 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘢𝘬𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘴𝘱𝘦𝘤𝘪𝘦𝘴.’

It would be a more comfortable death to have a heart attack than to burn to death.

‘𝘐’𝘮 𝘴𝘰𝘳𝘳𝘺. 𝘗𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘴𝘦 𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘨𝘪𝘷𝘦 𝘮𝘦.’

One by one.

My children of the collective consciousness meet their end one by one.

100 colonies, thousands of egg sacs, various organic tissues covering the colony grounds, the Hounz that fought as my Hound, the inconspicuous scout Fly, the Cust that once invaded cities in swarms, the Kabana that breached the front lines with its massive body, the Puker that protected my colony grounds, the Skeletunnel that served as a passageway for my children, the elite chimeraz that demonstrated the advantage of bipedal combat, the Gloworm that lit up the indoors, the Tritula that demonstrated a long-range attack method with its venomous bone spikes, the Hydra that wielded formidable tentacles, the Xenotera that lay scattered on the ground near me, 470’s crescent chimeraz, various individuals born in other Test Subjects’ colonies.

All of them stopped their own hearts at my command.

I killed my children who trusted and followed me with my own hands.

The entire training ground was soaked in death.

The killing continued until nothing was left alive here except me.

All the waves that shared emotions and senses have been severed.

I felt empty, as if I was the only one left in the world.

After killing countless children, I was free from the misery of ruling a legion,

And the misery of killing countless children crept into my heart.

It is truly, truly a terrible loss.

But this is the right thing to do.

🔸🔸🔸🔸🔸🔸

The white marble-finished interior had an open feel to it. Perhaps they were trying to express a temple from mythology.

I was sitting here face to face with the head of the Darwin Foundation.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Subject 412.”

He was 55 years old this year, with droopy eyes that made him look sleepy and slightly dark skin. This man with black hair and beard braided and wearing an ocher-colored toga that was modified to look like a modern suit was the head of the Darwin Foundation, Francis Darwin.

“Test Subjects who pass the preliminary selection are given names by our foundation. Aren’t you looking forward to it?”

“I am.”

“You don’t look like you’re looking forward to it at all. Oh, if you have any complaints about the foundation’s methods, feel free to speak your mind. I am the head of this foundation, after all. Hahahaha.”

This man named Darwin is and will be my superior. There’s no benefit to me in bringing up something that will annoy him for no reason.

“I simply don’t have much change in my facial expressions.”

“That does appear to be the case. For you.”

He seemed to understand, as he must have heard about my behavioral and speech patterns from the secretary.

“What is your dream?”

Is it a formality?

Perhaps the Test Subjects of the 1st, 2nd, 3rd, and 4th batches were asked the same question.

“My dream is to live as a mercenary by forming a colony with my children and carrying out combat missions for the Darwin Foundation.”

“Are you saying that you seek harmony rather than independence from humans?”

Harmony or coexistence or whatever.

“Yes, that’s right.”

“That is truly wonderful.”

Darwin straightened his clothes with a satisfied expression and leaned slightly towards me.

“It’s about time we stopped calling you Subject 412. Do you have a name that you want or the meaning of a name?”

In this day and age, where all languages and cultures have been integrated, humans no longer inherit their surnames or names from their parents. Therefore, the only criteria for humans to choose their names nowadays are the sound, length, and meaning of the name.

And when calling someone’s name, it is customary to call them by the name they want.

“Do I have to let the foundation decide my name?”

“It is customary, but you don’t have to live with the name we give you.”

The Test Subjects who had met Director Darwin so far must have chosen their own names.

“Actually, I have a name in mind.”

“Oh? This has never happened before. . . . You’re different from the others, even in your way of thinking. So, what name do you want?”

“I have lived my entire life learning and training to become a ruler.”

If there’s a name I want to be called by.

“I intend to become the master of countless chimeraz and the ruler of my species.”

🔸🔸🔸🔸🔸🔸

October 8, 2620. I stood side by side with the faculty, research staff, and secretaries of the chimeraz project batch 5.

I was standing in front of the humans with something like a sash in front of my abdomen.

A short cylindrical robot was shining its large camera lens.

━𝐖𝐞 𝐰𝐢𝐥𝐥 𝐭𝐚𝐤𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐩𝐢𝐜𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐞 𝐧𝐨𝐰.

The naming ceremony was an extremely formal procedure. I, who had passed the preliminary selection of the 5th batch, talked to the director and took a picture with the staff on a stage-like platform.

On my way back to my private room after the naming ceremony, I had a casual chat with my secretary.

“Was there really a need to have a naming ceremony like this?”

“Aren’t you proud?”

“It’s a project that’s being carried out in secret, so I don’t understand why we have to gather here and take pictures to show off.”

“I’ve heard that the previous Test Subjects were happy when they received their names, but Young Master is surprisingly indifferent.”

“I’m disappointed that Mother wasn’t here when I received my name.”

When I expressed my slight regret, the secretary swallowed his words with a complicated expression on his face.

Perhaps my capable secretary had guessed what I wanted. I’ll let it go if it was something he knew about but couldn’t help, assuming there were circumstances that I didn’t know about.

I had lived as Experimental Subject 412 for 18 years.

I was just a Test Subject born as the 412th among the 500 Test Subjects born to a single mother in the chimeraz project.

Before I knew it, it felt strange to be called by a number like that.

Perhaps the reason I couldn’t define who I was all this time was because I didn’t have a name.

Just having a name made it feel like my thoughts about ‘myself’ had become several times clearer.

My worth and firm direction have been proven several times, and now the Darwin Foundation seems to respect my opinion. This is evident from the fact that they agreed to my request to name myself, which is different from the usual practice.

I haven’t learned all of the ancient languages, so I don’t know where the meaning comes from, but it is a name that definitely expresses my identity very well.

In any case, I had been living without an identity. Because I didn’t have a name.

Kemet Agele Kreion.

Kemet means ‘black earth’. It’s an image that goes well with my colony grounds, where I will be actively using blood vessels and Xenotera in the future.

Agele means ‘group, flock’. That is the chimeraz, a species of inter-species group that follows a single collective consciousness.

Kreion means ‘master, ruler, sovereign’. My children will call me their master, and I will become the ruler of the chimeraz and the sovereign of the species.

‘𝘒𝘦𝘮𝘦𝘵 𝘈𝘨𝘦𝘭𝘦 𝘒𝘳𝘦𝘪𝘰𝘯.’

That is my name.

That is ‘me’.

“So, Young Master. What part of your name do you want to be called by?”

“Kreion.”

🔸🔸🔸🔸🔸🔸

Nemea, the capital planet of the Nemea star nation.

With a population of 10.4 billion, half of the planet’s surface is covered by metropolises. Colonies symbolizing the nation’s economic power float in orbit, and there is heavy traffic of spaceships traveling between the spaceports in orbit and the spaceports on the ground.

A private spaceship of the Darwin Foundation landed at a spaceport located several kilometers away from the metropolis.

𝘞𝘩𝘪𝘳𝘳𝘳𝘳𝘳.

A mechanical staircase extended from the spaceship to the ground.

‘Kreion’ descended the stairs.

And Haber, who was waiting at the bottom of the stairs, greeted him.

“Welcome, Young Master.”

“Where do I go?”

At that moment, a luxurious anti-gravity sedan approached and stopped behind Haber.

“We have prepared a mansion for Young Master to live in. Please follow me.”

“I heard that I’m entering a company where real humans work.”

“Yes, that’s right. Hahahaha.”

“Is it a real company? Not a training ground with artificial humans?”

“It is a company where real employees work. Not artificial humans, and not a training ground prepared in advance. You will learn how to blend into human society there, and at the same time. . . . You will also take the remaining tests.”

“I see. Adapting to life among humans will also be a necessary process for me.”

“That is why I would like to ask you to do something in particular.”

“Tell me.”

Haber spoke very carefully.

“I understand that Young Master’s instincts cannot be helped. However, as you will be active in real society, you need to hide those instincts when dealing with humans.”

An instinct that all chimeraz have.

It was the concern about xenophobia.

“Mother told me. She said that I have to get along with humans to survive.”

“Oh. . . . Is that so?”

“No matter how much I physiologically loathe humans, I’m not an idiot who can’t even control my facial expressions in front of them.”

“Thank you for understanding.”

“Even if you didn’t worry, I was planning to do so because Mother told me to do so first.”

“. . .Yes.”

Haber focused on driving again. Even though it was autonomous driving by the vehicle’s AI.

“More importantly, where are the Test Subjects from the 1st to the 4th batch?”

“All four Test Subjects are residing in the city where the company is located. Since the ‘coming-of-age ceremony’ of the chimeraz project has not yet begun, they are prohibited from harming each other. They don’t know each other’s information either.”

The ‘coming-of-age ceremony’ is when the five Test Subjects kill each other to survive, and the last Test Subject who makes it through the year unharmed becomes a 19-year-old adult.

This means that Kreion only needs to kill four more of his kind. Right here in this metropolis.

“Whether it’s a company or whatever, this is human society. Won’t there be a lot of chaos if I create a colony and attack them?”

“Of course. I will tell you the details while we are in the vehicle. Oh, by the way, the mansion and this vehicle are also Young Master’s private property.”

‘𝘗𝘳𝘪𝘷𝘢𝘵𝘦 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘵𝘺. . .?’

Kreion had never had anything that was ‘his’.

Translator’s Blog

Blog

• From Page to Screen: The Grim Reality of Novel to Netflix Adaptation
• Kimonos, Cosplay, and Cultural Cancels: Nezuko’s Demon Slayer Saga in China
• Wakana Gojou: The Ultimate Husbando? Is This Anime Romance Even Real?
• Are You Lowkey an Emo Kid, But Like, in a Good Way?
• Why You Can Read Light Novels But Can’t Speak English: A Guide to Unlocking Your Inner Voice