Crafting Gear From Monster Genes

Defeating the Goliath X-01 was necessary to obtain the rare gene and fulfill Diaro’s third condition, but Kreyn hoped that he, too, would be able to make personal progress.

The victory over Hargod and the flower from the poisonous lake were the ingredients for the Complex Creation. He felt he could gain something worthwhile from the Goliath X-01 or from the observatory’s underground level.

Kreyn wasn’t wrong.

[The Complex Creation is now available.]

He stared at the system message for a moment before nodding.

Tap.

Diaro’s hand fell on his shoulder as he suddenly appeared to Kreyn’s right.

"Well, well, judging by the smile on your face, you got more out of this battle than you expected, didn’t you?"

A chill ran down Kreyn’s spine as he turned to face Diaro.

’Damn, you can’t hide anything from him, can you? Then again, it doesn’t seem like he wants to take anything extra.’

True, Diaro was a fair merchant, as long as he got what he wanted.

"Yes. This core... It’s the first time I’ve seen anything like it, but it looks like it might come in handy. I’ll keep it for myself." Kreyn decided to state his intentions right away.

"What?!" Norma protested. "The four of us defeated that robot! Maybe I want this core for myself, too!"

She looked at Varyn and Groza.

"Girls, tell him! You can’t keep all the loot for yourself!"

Varyn shrugged.

"That’s up to Diaro. After all, we fought the Goliath X-01 so Kreyn could get its gene and create a gear for one of us. That’s it."

Realizing she wouldn’t get any support from Varyn, Norma turned to Groza.

"What about you? You landed the decisive strike! We wouldn’t have defeated that robot without you. Don’t you want a reward?"

Groza scratched the back of her head with an awkward look.

"Kreyn and I are a team. If he can use that core somehow, then so be it."

Norma’s eyes darted from side to side, looking for support from anyone, but she found none.

"Damn it!" Norma stomped her foot. "Why is it always like this?!"

Kreyn, in turn, took another look at the core.

[Energy Core of the Goliath X-01

[The energy core of the main Iron Guard of Observatory SC-17. This core transformed a dangerous robot into a being brimming with energy, allowing the Goliath X-01 to defend the abandoned observatory for a long time until its fall. The core contains a massive reservoir of pure energy that cannot run out as long as there is any source of energy nearby.]

Kreyn nodded as his eyes scanned the core’s description.

This was something new to him, but he understood what it meant.

’I see. As long as the Goliath X-01 had this core, it could constantly absorb energy from its surroundings. It’s a different method, but it’s not much unlike how I or monsters recover our strength.’

Now, Kreyn had all three ingredients for the Complex Creation, but he wasn’t going to rush into it.

Diaro glanced at Kreyn with a gleam in his amber eyes.

"I think it’s high time you fulfilled your part of the deal, don’t you?"

"Ah... Sure. You’ll get what’s yours. Just give me a moment."

Kreyn handed the Energy Core to Groza and made his way to the Goliath X-01’s body.

True, now without its core, it was just a robot, but the energy had long saturated its frame, and as Diaro had said, that meant the Goliath X-01 possessed the gene just like any monster.

Tap.

Kreyn held out his hand as a stream of an unusual gray color headed toward him. The bright orb with the red demon mask vanished into his chest.

[Goliath X-01

[Tier: I

[Rarity: Epic

[Quality: Exceptional

[Features: Single Core Gene & Hybrid Structure.]

In fact, Kreyn hadn’t expected to see anything special. Defeating the Goliath X-01 wasn’t easy, but he would rate it a notch below the battle against the Crystal Crusher.

But Kreyn hadn’t taken one factor into account - there were now four of them. If it were just him and Groza, even with their new abilities and gear, they wouldn’t stand a chance against the Goliath X-01.

’Quality... It’s even higher than the Spider Queen’s, though I don’t know if it’s better than the Crystal Crusher’s Unique Quality,’ Kreyn mused, looking at the system window.

He was already familiar with one of the Features. The Spider Queen had the Single Core Gene, which meant the gear selection would be better but limited. It also meant that Forced Creation might be available to him.

But Kreyn knew nothing about the second feature. He never saw anything like it before.

’Hybrid Structure? I understand why this might be the case, considering what kind of opponent it was, but what does this feature mean?’

Fortunately for Kreyn, this time the system decided to answer him.

[Hybrid Structure is a feature inherent to genes of mixed origin, whether due to a monster’s body or its energy.

Hybrid Structure affects the Gene Forge as follows: the available creation options will be more diverse in structure but also far more complex to use.]

Kreyn nodded.

’I see. It’s a double-edged sword. To unleash the potential of something complex, you have to know how to use it properly.’

Then, Kreyn’s expression froze as he realized something.

’Wait... If one feature makes the choices fewer but more valuable, and the other makes the available choices more complex, then... what will the end result be?’

It was a rhetorical question.

Kreyn understood that, given the quality of this gene, the available options were bound to be more than worthy.

"Alright." He smirked. "In that case, let’s not waste any time."

Kreyn had more than enough Forge Flame charges. It was quite some time since he’d last created anything.

Thump!

The hammer struck the anvil as Kreyn looked at the Goliath X-01’s gene hovering before him.

"Show me the available options."

Deep down, Kreyn expected something. His experience told him so.

[Option 1

[Result: Wrath of the Steel Demon

[Chances of success: 50% or Forced Creation.]

Kreyn smirked.

"Forced Creation? Nah, I don’t want to risk fighting that bastard one-on-one, even if it’s just an imaginary battle."

This time, Kreyn decided to play it smart as he closed his eyes and returned to the real world.

"Hey, Diaro, the odds of you getting something cool or nothing are 50/50. What do you say?"

Diaro immediately waved his hand dismissively.

"Sure. You’ll never get anything worthwhile without taking a risk. Go on. You have my approval."

Kreyn shrugged.

"As you say."

He returned to the Gene Forge, and at his command, the hammer swung into action, transforming the Goliath X-01’s genes into something new.

With a bright flash that lit up the room, Kreyn returned to the real world as everyone else saw the result of his creation.

"What the...?" Norma’s eyes widened in disbelief.

She stared at the heavy sword hovering above the ground. In some ways, it resembled the blade of the Goliath X-01, but that wasn’t what caused the shock on their faces.

In front of the long hilt, part of the blade’s base, was a wide gun barrel with a trigger.

It was the sword-cannon.

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