๐ ๐ซ๐๐๐๐จ๐ฆ ๐ข๐ง ๐ ๐ ๐ข๐ฌ๐ก๐๐จ๐ฐ๐ฅ (1)
Darwin Foundationโs 470โs 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 hadnโt 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.
โ๐๐ฆ๐ฏ๐ฐ๐ต๐ฆ๐ณ๐ข.โ
Aside from that, thereโs 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.
โ. . . ๐๐๐ญ๐จ๐๐๐ซ ๐, ๐๐๐๐, ๐๐จ๐ฅ๐๐ซ ๐๐๐ฅ๐๐ง๐๐๐ซ, ๐:๐๐ ๐๐.
Anyway, I have passed the preliminary selection without a hitch. For now, I am satisfied with this.
โ๐๐ ๐ก๐๐ฏ๐ ๐๐จ๐ง๐๐ข๐ซ๐ฆ๐๐ ๐ญ๐ก๐๐ญ ๐ญ๐ก๐ ๐ฅ๐ข๐๐ ๐๐๐ญ๐ข๐ฏ๐ข๐ญ๐ข๐๐ฌ ๐จ๐ ๐๐ฅ๐ฅ ๐๐๐ฌ๐ญ ๐๐ฎ๐๐ฃ๐๐๐ญ๐ฌ, ๐๐ฑ๐๐๐ฉ๐ญ ๐๐ฑ๐ฉ๐๐ซ๐ข๐ฆ๐๐ง๐ญ๐๐ฅ ๐๐ฎ๐๐ฃ๐๐๐ญ ๐๐๐, ๐ก๐๐ฏ๐ ๐๐๐๐ฌ๐๐.
๐๐ณ๐ณ๐ณ๐ณ๐ณ๐ณ. . . .
The Kabana that had torn my body apart just a moment ago was nuzzling its snout on the ground.
โItโs okay. Youโre my child.โ
The fear and anxiety I felt from the Kabana vanished at my words.
โIt wasnโt your fault.โ
๐๐ถ๐ญ๐ฑ. . . .
It was probably terrified that it had almost killed its master by falling for another leaderโs wave.
โ๐๐ก๐ข๐ฌ ๐๐จ๐ง๐๐ฅ๐ฎ๐๐๐ฌ ๐ญ๐ก๐ ๐๐ข๐ง๐๐ฅ ๐ฉ๐ซ๐๐ฅ๐ข๐ฆ๐ข๐ง๐๐ซ๐ฒ ๐ฌ๐๐ฅ๐๐๐ญ๐ข๐จ๐ง ๐จ๐ ๐ญ๐ก๐ ๐๐ญ๐ก ๐๐๐ญ๐๐ก ๐จ๐ ๐ญ๐ก๐ ๐๐ก๐ข๐ฆ๐๐ซ๐๐ณ ๐ฉ๐ซ๐จ๐ฃ๐๐๐ญ.
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.
๐๐ณ๐ณ๐ณ๐ณ๐ณ๐ณ. . . .
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.
โ๐๐ก๐๐ง๐ค ๐ฒ๐จ๐ฎ ๐๐จ๐ซ ๐ฒ๐จ๐ฎ๐ซ ๐ก๐๐ซ๐ ๐ฐ๐จ๐ซ๐ค. ๐๐ฑ๐ฉ๐๐ซ๐ข๐ฆ๐๐ง๐ญ๐๐ฅ ๐๐ฎ๐๐ฃ๐๐๐ญ ๐๐๐, ๐ฉ๐ฅ๐๐๐ฌ๐ ๐ฉ๐ซ๐จ๐๐๐๐ ๐ญ๐จ ๐ญ๐ก๐ ๐๐๐๐จ๐ง๐ญ๐๐ฆ๐ข๐ง๐๐ญ๐ข๐จ๐ง ๐ซ๐จ๐จ๐ฆ ๐ข๐ง ๐๐๐ญ๐ ๐๐๐, ๐ฌ๐จ๐ฎ๐ญ๐ก๐๐๐ฌ๐ญ ๐จ๐ ๐ญ๐ก๐ ๐ญ๐ซ๐๐ข๐ง๐ข๐ง๐ ๐ ๐ซ๐จ๐ฎ๐ง๐, ๐๐๐ญ๐๐ซ ๐๐๐ฌ๐ญ๐ซ๐จ๐ฒ๐ข๐ง๐ ๐๐ฅ๐ฅ ๐๐ก๐ข๐ฆ๐๐ซ๐๐ณ ๐ข๐ง ๐ญ๐ก๐ ๐ญ๐ซ๐๐ข๐ง๐ข๐ง๐ ๐ ๐ซ๐จ๐ฎ๐ง๐ ๐ฐ๐ข๐ญ๐ก๐จ๐ฎ๐ญ ๐๐๐ข๐ฅ.
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. Itโs not bad, for what itโs worth.
However,
โDo I really have to kill all the chimeraz in this training ground?โ
I have 1,788 children under my command after absorbing 470โs 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?
โ๐๐ฅ๐๐๐ฌ๐ ๐๐จ๐จ๐ฉ๐๐ซ๐๐ญ๐.
If itโs a request to cooperate, not an order, then I should be able to refuse, shouldnโt I?
Itโs 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.
โIโm just asking. Do I really have to kill all my children here?โ
There was a short pause as if they were contemplating the answer.
โ. . . ๐๐ญ๐ก๐๐ซ๐ฐ๐ข๐ฌ๐, ๐ฐ๐ ๐ฐ๐ข๐ฅ๐ฅ ๐ก๐๐ฏ๐ ๐ง๐จ ๐๐ก๐จ๐ข๐๐ ๐๐ฎ๐ญ ๐ญ๐จ ๐ข๐ง๐๐ข๐ง๐๐ซ๐๐ญ๐ ๐ญ๐ก๐ ๐๐ง๐ญ๐ข๐ซ๐ ๐ญ๐ซ๐๐ข๐ง๐ข๐ง๐ ๐ ๐ซ๐จ๐ฎ๐ง๐. ๐๐ก๐ ๐๐ก๐ข๐ฆ๐๐ซ๐๐ณ ๐ฐ๐จ๐ฎ๐ฅ๐ ๐ฌ๐ฎ๐๐๐๐ซ ๐ ๐ซ๐๐๐ญ๐ฅ๐ฒ ๐๐๐๐จ๐ซ๐ ๐ญ๐ก๐๐ฒ ๐๐ข๐, ๐๐ฎ๐ญ ๐ข๐ ๐ญ๐ก๐๐ญโ๐ฌ ๐จ๐ค๐๐ฒ ๐ฐ๐ข๐ญ๐ก ๐ฒ๐จ๐ฎ, ๐ญ๐ก๐๐ง ๐ฐ๐ ๐ฌ๐ก๐๐ฅ๐ฅ ๐๐จ ๐ฃ๐ฎ๐ฌ๐ญ ๐ญ๐ก๐๐ญ.
So thatโs how itโs going to be.
โ. . . Very well.โ
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.
โI will dispose of the remaining children now.โ
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.
โ๐๐ต ๐ช๐ด ๐ง๐ฐ๐ณ ๐ต๐ฉ๐ฆ ๐ด๐ข๐ฌ๐ฆ ๐ฐ๐ง ๐ฐ๐ถ๐ณ ๐ด๐ฑ๐ฆ๐ค๐ช๐ฆ๐ด.โ
It would be a more comfortable death to have a heart attack than to burn to death.
โ๐โ๐ฎ ๐ด๐ฐ๐ณ๐ณ๐บ. ๐๐ญ๐ฆ๐ข๐ด๐ฆ ๐ง๐ฐ๐ณ๐จ๐ช๐ท๐ฆ ๐ฎ๐ฆ.โ
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, 470โs crescent chimeraz, various individuals born in other Test Subjectsโ 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.
๐ธ๐ธ๐ธ๐ธ๐ธ๐ธ
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.
โItโs a pleasure to meet you, Subject 412.โ
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.
โTest Subjects who pass the preliminary selection are given names by our foundation. Arenโt you looking forward to it?โ
โI am.โ
โYou donโt look like youโre looking forward to it at all. Oh, if you have any complaints about the foundationโs methods, feel free to speak your mind. I am the head of this foundation, after all. Hahahaha.โ
This man named Darwin is and will be my superior. Thereโs no benefit to me in bringing up something that will annoy him for no reason.
โI simply donโt have much change in my facial expressions.โ
โThat does appear to be the case. For you.โ
He seemed to understand, as he must have heard about my behavioral and speech patterns from the secretary.
โWhat is your dream?โ
Is it a formality?
Perhaps the Test Subjects of the 1st, 2nd, 3rd, and 4th batches were asked the same question.
โMy dream is to live as a mercenary by forming a colony with my children and carrying out combat missions for the Darwin Foundation.โ
โAre you saying that you seek harmony rather than independence from humans?โ
Harmony or coexistence or whatever.
โYes, thatโs right.โ
โThat is truly wonderful.โ
Darwin straightened his clothes with a satisfied expression and leaned slightly towards me.
โItโs about time we stopped calling you Subject 412. Do you have a name that you want or the meaning of a name?โ
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 someoneโs name, it is customary to call them by the name they want.
โDo I have to let the foundation decide my name?โ
โIt is customary, but you donโt have to live with the name we give you.โ
The Test Subjects who had met Director Darwin so far must have chosen their own names.
โActually, I have a name in mind.โ
โOh? This has never happened before. . . . Youโre different from the others, even in your way of thinking. So, what name do you want?โ
โI have lived my entire life learning and training to become a ruler.โ
If thereโs a name I want to be called by.
โI intend to become the master of countless chimeraz and the ruler of my species.โ
๐ธ๐ธ๐ธ๐ธ๐ธ๐ธ
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.
โ๐๐ ๐ฐ๐ข๐ฅ๐ฅ ๐ญ๐๐ค๐ ๐ญ๐ก๐ ๐ฉ๐ข๐๐ญ๐ฎ๐ซ๐ ๐ง๐จ๐ฐ.
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.
โWas there really a need to have a naming ceremony like this?โ
โArenโt you proud?โ
โItโs a project thatโs being carried out in secret, so I donโt understand why we have to gather here and take pictures to show off.โ
โIโve heard that the previous Test Subjects were happy when they received their names, but Young Master is surprisingly indifferent.โ
โIโm disappointed that Mother wasnโt here when I received my name.โ
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. Iโll let it go if it was something he knew about but couldnโt help, assuming there were circumstances that I didnโt 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 couldnโt define who I was all this time was because I didnโt have a name.
Just having a name made it feel like my thoughts about โmyselfโ 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 havenโt learned all of the ancient languages, so I donโt 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 didnโt have a name.
Kemet Agele Kreion.
Kemet means โblack earthโ. Itโs an image that goes well with my colony grounds, where I will be actively using blood vessels and Xenotera in the future.
Agele means โgroup, flockโ. That is the chimeraz, a species of inter-species group that follows a single collective consciousness.
Kreion means โmaster, ruler, sovereignโ. My children will call me their master, and I will become the ruler of the chimeraz and the sovereign of the species.
โ๐๐ฆ๐ฎ๐ฆ๐ต ๐๐จ๐ฆ๐ญ๐ฆ ๐๐ณ๐ฆ๐ช๐ฐ๐ฏ.โ
That is my name.
That is โmeโ.
โSo, Young Master. What part of your name do you want to be called by?โ
โKreion.โ
๐ธ๐ธ๐ธ๐ธ๐ธ๐ธ
Nemea, the capital planet of the Nemea star nation.
With a population of 10.4 billion, half of the planetโs surface is covered by metropolises. Colonies symbolizing the nationโs 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.
๐๐ฉ๐ช๐ณ๐ณ๐ณ๐ณ๐ณ.
A mechanical staircase extended from the spaceship to the ground.
โKreionโ descended the stairs.
And Haber, who was waiting at the bottom of the stairs, greeted him.
โWelcome, Young Master.โ
โWhere do I go?โ
At that moment, a luxurious anti-gravity sedan approached and stopped behind Haber.
โWe have prepared a mansion for Young Master to live in. Please follow me.โ
โI heard that Iโm entering a company where real humans work.โ
โYes, thatโs right. Hahahaha.โ
โIs it a real company? Not a training ground with artificial humans?โ
โIt 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.โ
โI see. Adapting to life among humans will also be a necessary process for me.โ
โThat is why I would like to ask you to do something in particular.โ
โTell me.โ
Haber spoke very carefully.
โI understand that Young Masterโs instincts cannot be helped. However, as you will be active in real society, you need to hide those instincts when dealing with humans.โ
An instinct that all chimeraz have.
It was the concern about xenophobia.
โMother told me. She said that I have to get along with humans to survive.โ
โOh. . . . Is that so?โ
โNo matter how much I physiologically loathe humans, Iโm not an idiot who canโt even control my facial expressions in front of them.โ
โThank you for understanding.โ
โEven if you didnโt worry, I was planning to do so because Mother told me to do so first.โ
โ. . .Yes.โ
Haber focused on driving again. Even though it was autonomous driving by the vehicleโs AI.
โMore importantly, where are the Test Subjects from the 1st to the 4th batch?โ
โAll four Test Subjects are residing in the city where the company is located. Since the โcoming-of-age ceremonyโ of the chimeraz project has not yet begun, they are prohibited from harming each other. They donโt know each otherโs information either.โ
The โcoming-of-age ceremonyโ 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.
โWhether itโs a company or whatever, this is human society. Wonโt there be a lot of chaos if I create a colony and attack them?โ
โOf 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 Masterโs private property.โ
โ๐๐ณ๐ช๐ท๐ข๐ต๐ฆ ๐ฑ๐ณ๐ฐ๐ฑ๐ฆ๐ณ๐ต๐บ. . .?โ
Kreion had never had anything that was โhisโ.
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