Chapter 130. Sacrifice
A white egg with black stripes engraved on it.
It seemed like there was a Centaurides sleeping inside that egg.
It must have happened while we were sleeping.
It looked like the Centaurides had been affected by Melody Fox’s buff.
“The remaining time until the Centaurides hatches, like with Kino, isn’t showing either.”
“Hoeeeng! Is the Centaurides evolving? I’m jealous! I also want to evolve into a cool sheep sheep sheep!”
There was no way that egg wasn’t a Centaurides.
It gave the feeling that it was connected to me with an invisible thread, just like the other tamed monsters. More importantly, there was no way Centaurides would leave without telling me.
Lately, whenever Centaurides left, she always reported to me and got my permission.
Even when she went to see her brothers.
There was also no chance someone else brought the egg here and left. The possibility that one of our monsters brought the egg was even more unlikely.
If that were the case, they would’ve told me.
Anyway.
Just because the Centaurides entered that state didn’t necessarily mean she was going to evolve.
It could be preparing for a significant body enhancement or even a species transformation.
So, I didn’t want to set my hopes too high.
While I was staring at the egg that the Centaurides had turned into.
[Doodoodoodoomba! Melody! Why is Centaurides next in line? Don’t be biased!!!]
The Hedgehog Summoner shouted at Melody Fox, sounding offended.
Melody tilted her head.
[Kyu···?]
[Be honest! You secretly hated me, didn’t you!?]
[Kyu, kyu.]
Melody shook her head vigorously.
This time, Medical Mushroom subtly approached Melody, with a hurt expression.
It didn’t seem like Mushroom was truly upset, but more like she was just playing along with Hedgehog.
Anyway.
I picked up the troubled Melody Fox, who was surrounded by the two, and held her in my arms.
Then I spoke to Hedgehog and Mushroom.
“Why are you bothering Melody? Buffs aren’t something you give just because you want to. They naturally flow to whoever the heart leans towards. Besides, you both received a bit of a buff, didn’t you? Not as much as Centaurides, but still.”
[Doodoomba··· I’m upset··· Melody clearly liked me more than Centaurides…]
[Pii···.]
Now that I thought about it, it was strange.
Melody had been more friendly with Centaurides recently, but even so, she seemed to like Hedgehog and Mushroom more.
Logically, if anyone were to receive such a significant buff, it should have been those two first.
[Doombombomb. So, you were just playing with my feelings all this time! Melody Doomba···!]
[Pidoomba!!]
“What’s with you two? Feeling like someone you love has been taken away, and your pure heart has been crushed? Well, cheer up!”
[Kyu···?]
Apparently.
Melody may not have shown it outwardly, but she seemed to have secretly trusted Centaurides.
Why, though, I wasn’t sure.
‘Maybe it’s because Melody has spent more time with Centaurides than the other monsters?’
I could only cautiously guess that Melody and Centaurides had built trust over time since they stayed in the hideout together for longer periods.
***
While we were waiting for the dispatch team to return.
The assistants who arrived late to the broadcast showed interest in the Centaurides’ egg.
【Pururu】─What’s up with that egg?
【Mir-Stin】─Why is there an egg all of a sudden?
【Mysticism】─🤔 Is it food?
【Yumi】─It seems one of the monsters is preparing for evolution?
【Rizenova】─I don’t see Centaurides around. I suspect she’s the one sleeping inside that egg.
【Luna-chan】─Did you use an Evolution Ticket? o_O
【Bubble Bubble】─It doesn’t seem like an Evolution Ticket was used. I think Melody Fox’s buff caused it. I remember Gauntlet didn’t have any Evolution Tickets left.
【Luna-chan】─Ooong! O_o
【Pururu】─Stop squinting.
【Mysticism】─😠
After that chat.
Everyone began imagining and predicting how Centaurides might change.
At that moment.
[Sssss!!!]
[Return.]
Black Magma Slime and Iris.
Two members of the dispatch team who had been sent to the planet Kendora returned.
As always, the first to welcome them was Merino Ula.
“Welcome back! I missed you!”
[Sss!]
[Glad to see you.]
After greeting me and the other monsters, the dispatch team followed Merino Ula to the dining table that had been set. Ah, the table was newly provided by Rize.
“Yanyan! You worked hard, so eat a lot! Black Magma Slime, don’t eat the table like last time!”
[Sss!]
[Consume.]
I thanked the dispatch team for their hard work.
Then, before we ate, I decided to inspect the Dimensional Altar for a moment.
The state of the Dimensional Altar could be checked through the status window, or by setting up an altar connected to Kendora and inspecting it. In the latter case, the tamed monsters could also check what offerings had been made. No installation tickets were consumed for this.
By the way, I had set up the Dimensional Altar next to the crystal ball house.
‘···They’ve offered quite a lot. I told them to take their time.’
The offerings sent by the natives of Kendora.
I could see a list of their appearance, names, and performance at a glance.
They had sent about 300 offerings in one day.
‘None of these seem particularly useful to me.’
I carefully inspected each item.
Originally, I planned to leave this task to Centaurides, but since she suddenly turned into an egg, I had no choice but to do it myself.
【Pururu】─Hey, we can see the list of offerings too.
“Huh? You guys can see it too?”
【Pururu】─Yeah, we can see it perfectly.
【Mysticism】─There are a lot of interesting items! 😃
“······.”
I didn’t expect that even the assistants could see it.
I immediately changed my plan.
“Dan-bi. Can I ask you a favor?”
【Pururu】─What is it?
“Can you go through the offerings and sort out the ones that seem useful and those that don’t?”
【Pururu】─??
【Pururu】─Why should I do that?
【Mir-Stin】─Just do it if you’re told.
【Yumi】─Exactly. What kind of slave talks back to their master?
【Pururu】─Why am I a slave? Wtf.
【Mysticism】─🤔 You weren’t a slave?
【Rizenova】─That’s surprising.
【Pururu】─But why me? There are plenty of others who could do it.
“Because you’re the most trustworthy. I’m counting on you.”
【Pururu】─?
【Pururu】─Well, I am the most trustworthy of the assistants. Guess I have no choice. ㅋ
【Bubble Bubble】─Simple-minded···.
【Luna-chan】─Isn’t she just dumb? Cuecue.
【Rizenova】─You are quite easy to handle.
【Yumi】─Definitely a slave.
【Pururu】─Just don’t complain later if I mess up the sorting.
“Don’t worry. I trust your judgment.”
【Pururu】─ㅋㅋ Okay.
And so, I entrusted the sorting task to Pururu.
*
*
*
【Pururu】─Whew. That was exhausting.
【Pururu】─Geon, the sorting is done.
Right after I finished my meal, Pururu posted a message saying the sorting was complete.
【Rizenova】─That was quicker than expected.
【Luna-chan】─Wow~ our Puruchan seems to be surprisingly competent. o_O
【Mir-Stin】─Despite how she looks, Dan-bi is pretty quick and efficient with her work.
【Yumi】─You’re sure you sorted it properly, right?
【Mysticism】─You didn’t do it half-heartedly, did you? 😠
【Pururu】─I did it right. Don’t criticize my judgment.
“Great job, thanks.”
【Pururu】─ㅎㅎ
“I’ll leave all these tedious tasks to you from now on.”
【Pururu】─ㅇㅋㅇㅋ Just leave it to me.”
【Mir-Stin】─You’ve been taken advantage of.
【Bubble Bubble】─Hmm. Could it be that Pururu has feelings for Gauntlet?
【Mysticism】─Do you? 🧐
Items that were deemed useless and would be exchanged for coins.
And the ones judged to be useful.
Among them.
I didn’t bother to thoroughly inspect the former.
It was too much hassle, and I decided to fully trust Pururu’s judgment.
“The items you sorted as useful don’t seem particularly necessary to me either.”
【Pururu】─I classified ambiguous ones as useful too. We can’t just exchange all the uncertain items for coins.
【Yumi】─Good work.
After Pururu’s first round of sorting.
I quickly moved on to the second round.
The second sorting was simple.
It involved filtering out the items Pururu deemed useful but that I considered unnecessary.
After spending a bit of time on it, only two items remained.
The final choices were two Dreamwave beds.
The Dreamwave was, simply put, a bed.
Of course, it wasn’t just an ordinary bed but one with a variety of advanced technologies.
According to the manual:
– Adaptive Mattress.
Perfect weight distribution to relieve pressure points.
– Gravity Control Field.
Generates a slight gravity field to reduce the sensation of weight, making you feel like you’re floating on a cloud.
– Temperature Control Fabric.
Reacts to the user’s body temperature to maintain the optimal sleeping temperature.
– Bio-Rhythm Synchronization System.
Analyzes the user’s biological rhythm to guide them to the best sleep cycle.
– Air Purification Circulation System.
Continuously purifies the air around the bed, removing allergens and fine dust.
– Sonic Wave Blocking Field.
Creates a sound wave field that blocks external noise.
Can also play natural sounds to induce comfortable sleep when needed.
– Holographic Ceiling Display.
Projects holographic views of constellations or landscapes for pre-sleep relaxation.
And more.
Among the 300 items, this was by far the best.
I briefly considered keeping the other items for reverse support, but upon reflection, I decided it was more advantageous to exchange them for coins.
All of them felt like downgraded versions of items made with Omega technology.
Since reverse support tickets were limited, if I were going to send something, it had to be of higher quality.
If I were to provide reverse support to the assistants, it would be much better to send items made by Omega.
‘Besides, Omega is already preparing items to send to Hwang Mir for sale on Earth.’
Also.
Omega’s items couldn’t be exchanged for coins, but the items received through the altar could be. It was best to accumulate as many coins as possible when I had the chance.
In any case.
I decided to use one bed for myself and gave the other to Merino as a gift.
Merino was the most delicate creature among us, so she needed to be cherished.
“Yanyan! It’s so soft! Melody, come up here too!”
[Kyuah!]
[Doodoomba! I want to get up too!]
【Pururu】─Oh? I just had a good idea.
【Yumi】─I have a bad feeling about it.
【Rizenova】─Let’s put that thought aside.
【Pururu】─Jeez, you’re so negative without even hearing it.
【Pururu】─Just listen for a second.
【Pururu】─What if we take all the items we received as offerings and sell them to make a huge profit? Then, with the money we earn, we can send coins back to Gaon as support.
【Mysticism】─Ooh! Smart! 😮
【Yumi】─As expected, it was a bad idea. Did you forget reverse support tickets are limited? It would be a waste.
【Pururu】─We can just buy more reverse support tickets with the coins we earn.
【Mysticism】─Exactly! 😃
【Yumi】─The problem isn’t the coins.
【Rizenova】─Do you even know when we’ll find another vending machine? Think before you act.
【Bubble Bubble】─Remember, vending machines are hard to find. We only have one tracker left.
【Mir-Stin】─Pururu, that’s a foolish idea. And we’ve already set aside the items for sale. They are innovative, won’t cause too much disruption to society, and will fetch a high price. The offerings can’t even compare.
【Luna-chan】─Dan-bi-chan, you baka. o_O
【Pururu】─Okay···.
【Pururu】─Now that I think about it, you’re right. It’s best to use reverse support tickets only for really good items.
【Mysticism】─😠
【Yumi】─At least you admitted your mistake quickly.
【Rizenova】─Surprising. I thought you’d insist on being right.
【Mir-Stin】─Though Dan-bi is foolish, she doesn’t have a stubborn streak. She knows when she’s wrong and can accept others’ opinions. She’s also kind.
【Bubble Bubble】─I wouldn’t say kind.
【Mir-Stin】─She’s kind in real life.
【Luna-chan】─Dan-bi-chan may seem like a jerk here, but she’s super nice in person. ><
【Mysticism】─Pururu, you fool! 🤭
【Pururu】─What the hell is your problem, b*tch?
I didn’t scold Pururu.
Even though it was a suggestion made without much thought, the fact that she was thinking for my sake and using her brain was enough to make it valuable.
It’s not easy to sincerely think about others.
So, it was only right to be thankful.
Anyway, moving on.
I exchanged all the unnecessary items for coins.
By the end of the day, I had earned 1,500 coins from the altar connected to Kendora.
***
68th day in the labyrinth.
“Pat, pat. I hope you hatch beautifully.”
While Merino was carefully cleaning Centaurides’ egg.
Crack-!
Perhaps the time had come, as the egg began to crack.