Mother and Child of the Cosmic Whale

"Alright, let's get to work on the second missile."

Shin nosuke guided the internal torpedo toward the second missile.

"There's definitely a distortion in the missile's body. Given the structural integrity of the Rimurian Galactic Empire's WAC-65 anti-ship missile, the penetrated section hasn't deformed completely, but it might have bent or twisted."

"Can't we just pull it straight out with a wire..."

"You're right. It looks like the warhead's explosive unit and the propulsion unit are bent at their connection point, so it might be better to cut the connection and remove the warhead separately."

"But how do we disconnect it? Even if we've disabled the system, forcing it could still cause detonation?"

Marks answers Shinosuke's concern.

"I'll dismantle it directly."

"Directly? You mean going outside the ship?"

"Yes, I can operate without a spacesuit for about an hour without issue. That should be enough time to dismantle it or cut through the propulsion unit."

Shinosuke fell silent, pondering.

"That's the most reliable option... Alright, I'll ask Marks to do it—but don't push yourself too hard."

"I'll be fine. There's no situation that demands pushing my limits."

With that, Marks left the cockpit to prepare.

Fifteen minutes later, Marks was ready, and the second anti-ship missile removal operation began.

『Master, I'm going outside the ship now.』

『Understood. Be careful.』

『Roger.』

Marks, equipped with a thruster unit for space travel, exited the ship and approached the smaller whale.

At that moment, a transmission came in from Seira, who had remained aboard the Fukubuki.

"Shin nosuke, the space whale is moving. The mother whale is slowly approaching from your direction."

Indeed, the parent whale, which had been maintaining a steady distance, was now drawing near to the calf.

"Markus, stay alert! The parent whale is coming this way—get back inside the ship for now."

Shin nosuke warned, but Markus had already attached himself to the surface of the calf and was already aware of the approaching parent whale.

"No, it seems safe. They don't appear to be acting aggressively."

Yang nodded in agreement with Markus's assessment.

"I also agree with Markus's judgment. They're probably just coming to observe our work up close. If they were hostile and meant to eliminate us, they would have approached quickly and attacked immediately. To avoid causing unnecessary concern for the mother whale, I think we should continue our work as is."

While Yan was explaining, Marks had already begun the operation.

He dismantled the connection between the torpedo's warhead and propulsion section, using a work laser gun to cut through areas that couldn't be disassembled otherwise.

Meanwhile, the mother whale had approached closely to just in front of her calf, but made no move to interfere with Marks's work—instead, she quietly watched over his efforts.

Marks's disassembly work concluded after about forty minutes, successfully securing a wire around the warhead still lodged inside the calf's body.

"A warhead fragment is attached to the missile's main body, covered in what appears to be tissue from the space whale. I'll collect a sample."

As Marks collected the sample from the missile, he suddenly looked up toward the adult whale. Inside the outer layer of the head, a red-glowing organ was visible—its gaze meeting Marks's dual camera and eyes directly.

"Confirmed organ resembling the eye of a space whale. Appears to be a single eye. Video recording secured."

Yang and Fusuki, the remaining members with Sanders, struggle to contain their excitement as Marks' reports come in one after another.

For the two researchers from the Space Environment Agency's Investigation and Research Division, it's only natural they're overwhelmed—new information about the previously unknown space whale is pouring in faster than they can process it.

Still, right now, rescuing the calf takes priority over gathering information.

When Marks returned to the internal craft, the final stage had begun.

As Shinosuke retracted the wire, just as he had with the first missile, Marks simultaneously sealed the wound with repair compound.

Eventually, they successfully removed the second missile from inside the calf.

"It's out! For now, that's all we can do."

Shin nosuke detached the wire connected to the missile warhead from the calf whale.

"Operation complete. Move away from the mother and calf. Milena, Fukubuki, retreat as well."

"Understood."

As the inner fireboat and Fukubuki moved away from the calf whale, the mother whale began swimming around the motionless calf, which was still mimicking the asteroid.

"Fukubuki to Shin nosuke-san, the mother whale is singing again."

Seyla reports that even the equipment brought in by Yan on the internal combustion boat has managed to detect the whale's song.

...Kukku...Kakku...Cocokko...

The mother whale seems to be calling out to her calf.

After a while, responding to the mother's call, the calf began to move.

Unfolding its body, which had been curled up to mimic the asteroid, the calf revealed its true form.

And swimming alongside the adult whale, Shinnosuke and the others were captivated by its mysterious form.

"Thank goodness you're safe."

"Yes, that's right."

Under Shinnosuke's watchful gaze, the mother and calf swam for a while close to the inner ship and Fubuki, circling them gently before vanishing into the darkness of space.

"The mission is complete... Is that correct?"

Yang nodded in response to Shinnosuke's question.

"More than sufficient, in fact, an outcome beyond expectations. Thank you so much indeed."

Thus, despite the unexpected turn of events involving the rescue of the space whale, they had successfully concluded the investigation request.