novelraw Chapter 255
Chapter 255
Chapter 255
The first thing Kait paid attention to when entering Mardila was the appearance of the intelligent lifeforms there. Depending on their form, he might not be able to show himself in front of them. He applied maximum concealment to the Queen Bee and checked the surface.
"It seems that the inhabitants of Mardila are intelligent lifeforms with highly developed forelimbs. No wonder they are said to be common throughout the galaxy."
"Yeah. But even so, there's quite a bit of variation... These intelligent lifeforms don't have any connections to other planets, right?"
"Correct. Since the beginning of the observation of this planet, there has been no confirmation of expansion into space. There shouldn't be any falsehoods in the reports, but..."
Just from what could be seen, there were beings walking the surface that looked like Earthlings like Kait and the others, as well as species with beast heads and human bodies, and short but muscular species—truly diverse.
"I want you to check the name of the artificial celestial body that was in charge of observation and its supervisor. Depending on the case, we might need to consult the Central Star Cluster."
"Understood. I'll also check the report just in case."
"I'm counting on you."
There were just too few commonalities in their appearances. It would be more natural to say that intelligent lifeforms with developed forelimbs had been randomly gathered from various places.
A melting pot of species, so to speak. Kait had only seen such cases in post-spacefaring civilizations like the Federation or the Corporation. Maybe there were others out there, or maybe this was just one of those rare cases.
In the worst-case scenario, the artificial celestial body observing this place might have been involved in a large-scale cover-up. Considering the Earth case and the Tsubanda system incident, the Federation's past had its share of indefensible blunders. This planet might be one of them.
"Captain, I've reviewed the report."
"That was fast."
"Yes. The situation became clear much quicker than expected."
Before he could organize his thoughts, Emotion responded. Observation reports of a planet should number in the thousands. No matter how high-performance Emotion was, there was no way she could have reviewed them in such a short time.
"Apparently, the same kind of question was raised back when this planet first came under Federation observation. In other words, it was already a multi-species planet at the time observation began."
"I see...?"
Indeed, from the perspective of the Federation's sphere of influence, Mardila was far from the Central Star Cluster. By the time it entered the sphere, intelligent lifeforms had already flourished to some extent. Though not fully convinced, Kait swallowed that doubt for now. That wasn't the main issue.
If there was no wrongdoing within the Federation, then all the better. In any case, just based on appearance, Kait shouldn't have much trouble blending in. The remaining issue was—
"Got it. As long as I can do something about these clothes, sneaking into Mardila shouldn't be impossible."
"Right. The level of clothing development is simply too different. It would be best to procure some clothing somewhere."
"That's fine for me, but what about you, Emotion...?"
In the worst case, wrapping herself in some discarded rags as a makeshift cloak would suffice. However, Emotion only had three external forms: human mode, android mode, and sphere. She didn't have any function to change clothing.
"Right. I'll accompany you in my sphere form, Captain. It looks like there are still some mechanical parts lying around, so I should be able to blend in."
"Will that be okay? I mean, won't you look too much like an out-of-place artifact?"
"Better than walking around in human form...?"
That was probably true. Unlike Kait, if Emotion's mechanical parts were visible even with a cloak, there would be no room for excuses. It made more sense to make others think she was just a machine from the start. Kait found her reasoning convincing.
Leaving Emotion behind wasn't an option for Kait. He believed that even the troublesome parts were part of the fun of a 'journey for two'. They might divide roles, but he would never leave her behind without reason. It was an unspoken rule between Kait and Emotion.
***
Now that the plan was set, things moved quickly.
Kait landed the Queen Bee in a spot unlikely to draw attention—in other words, the middle of the desert. He buried the ship in the sand to conceal it. Naturally, he made sure there were no intelligent lifeform signals nearby.
"Alright then. Let's start by getting a cloak."
'Yes. Sorry for the trouble, Captain.'
"No problem. If possible, I'd also like a large bag. One big enough that Emotion being inside wouldn't look strange."
Holding Emotion, now in her sphere form, under one arm, Kait leapt into the air.
The star that gave Mardila its light was disappearing beyond the horizon. In other words, night was coming to this land. That meant the risk of being spotted even if they moved a little boldly was low.
"Well, this is a planet with such a variety of intelligent lifeforms. It wouldn't be surprising if there were species with night vision. We'll keep the concealment tight."
'Understood. Leave the surface scanning to me.'
"I'm counting on you."
Kait and Emotion's first plan was to borrow the belongings of a deceased Mardilan. If they could also get some of the local currency in the process, all the better.
To blend into society, gathering information was essential. Ignorance of local customs would stand out. First, they needed to understand the social norms of this planet. For example, different species might use different currencies.
Thanks to data collected during observation, the minimum common language had already been translated. However, that was based on information from 500 cycles ago, so it wouldn't be surprising if the language was now outdated. Once the clothing issue was resolved, they would need to update their language knowledge. Emotion would have quite a bit of work to do.
That said, capturing Dangaresion was Emotion's wish. No matter how much her workload increased, she wouldn't complain.
'Captain. Displaying information in your view. Suitable remains found.'
"Got it."
A corpse in the desert. Leaning against a rock was a strangely shaped skeleton. A cloak that appeared to be leather, and a fairly large bag. As expected of Emotion, she found exactly what they needed in one go. There was some space left inside the bag. It might have originally held food or water. Besides that, there were bundles of paper and coin-like objects that were probably used as currency. They would make good use of them.
He avoided borrowing the clothes under the cloak. It was a kind of sentiment—he felt it was the final dignity of a nameless stranger. He dug a large hole in the sand and quietly laid the body to rest. He didn't know the burial customs of this planet, but he hoped this would suffice.
In any case, it looked like it would serve for concealment for now. He donned the cloak and slung the bag over his shoulder. When he put Emotion inside, she didn't fully fit and was half exposed. But at a glance, she wasn't noticeable, and it didn't hinder her ability to scan the surroundings. It was just the right size.
'This is a strange feeling. As if I've lost an important right, or perhaps I'm indulging in a distorted pleasure of leaving most of the labor to others.'
"That's a poetic way to put it. Don't worry, we're dividing the work fairly."
Specifically, physical labor was Kait's domain, and mental labor was Emotion's.
Kait leapt into the air again, this time heading toward the lights in the distance.