Chapter 260
Chapter 260
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 259
Chapter Title: Surrounded by Hundreds of Thousands
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Those three battleships... not surrounded by hundreds or thousands.
Hundreds of thousands of battleships had them encircled.
'That design...'
The battleships scattered across space like swarms of insects were in a form very familiar to me. There was no way I wouldn't recognize them. While not all of them, about half were the battleships from that RTS game invading Ardenia.
"Outdated battleships from a bygone era. Built with Three Civilization tech, but... technologically, they're barely scraping by at Three Civilization levels. Doesn't look like they even have Iron Hearts equipped."
"But there are just too many of them."
Of course, there was an enormous gap between battleships with Iron Hearts and those without. The aetheric power produced by an Iron Heart crushed any phenomenon with a lower ether rank.
Weapons made purely from science and technology struggled to pierce aetheric shields, while attacks infused with aether tore through scientifically-made shields like paper. The old weapon systems simply couldn't handle modern battleships.
'But that's only by a factor of dozens. This is...'
The Cosmic Peace Force's main battleships numbered only three.
Sure, the Tera-class battleships dwarfed the ones surrounding them in size, but no matter what, handling over ten thousand times their number was impossible.
In reality, the Cosmic Peace Force battleships were pouring out relentless barrages as they retreated.
While I stared in disbelief at the sheer swarm tactics, Carlton spoke up.
"The Cosmic Peace Force was conducting rescue operations when they warped in from all directions simultaneously, encircling them. Each battleship is packed with thousands of monsters, and they're attacking like mad with suicide charges slamming into the ether shields."
"So that's why the monsters haven't been raiding residential areas lately."
It meant the monsters, instead of being scattered across space and picked off individually, had gathered in one place to form legions.
This attack was the invasion of one such legion.
Beep-!
At that moment, an alarm sounded from my body. Glancing over, my aetherized mercenary registration card was glowing and floating in front of me.
[Emergency notice. Emergency notice. Please visit the Mercenary Office immediately. Emergency notice. Immediately. If possible, within 4 minutes and 11 seconds, please visit the Mercenary Office.]
I saw Sarang.
"Looks like it's related."
"Well, the Mercenary Chief Cheonhyeonil is with the Cosmic Peace Force, after all..."
'That bear-like uncle guy must be in there too.'
He'd recommended I join, but it seemed like he was sending me in his place.
I hadn't known, but instead of making a fuss, I got up and put on my clothes.
"Then I'll head out."
"Wait."
Sarang raised her hand to stop me.
"I'm coming too."
"Ma'am!?"
Carlton freaked out at the sudden declaration. He waved his hands frantically, trying to dissuade her.
"Do you even know what kind of place that is? Why would you go there?"
"Our employees are there too, aren't they? We have to rescue them."
"Rescue is the government's job, not ours. Our role is just to issue an official statement and protect the Mana Bank and Astral Network. And while it's true you're a top-tier ability user, ma'am..."
Woooong--!
At that moment, the space around Sarang trembled faintly. Carlton's face froze in shock mid-sentence as he poured out words.
"Dimension... vibration? Ma'am, don't tell me?"
"Yeah."
Sarang also stood up and got dressed. Contrary to what she'd said about halting training to focus on business, her excessively toned body was hidden by her clothes.
"I've reached the Transcendent Realm."
"You mean, now? All of a sudden?"
"I had an enlightenment. Once I gave up on growth, things started coming into view."
She lied calmly. Well, it was better than saying she'd reached Transcendence through sleeping with me. Who could argue if she claimed personal enlightenment?
Enlightenment was inherently subjective and sensory, something no one could define.
Those who couldn't achieve it might train for decades or centuries without even glimpsing it, while those who could gain it from seeing the rising sun or a starry night sky. If she said so, we had to accept it.
"Jaeyeon, head to the Mercenary Office. The next train is... in 3 minutes. See you on the Galaxy Express."
Flash!
She stepped onto the teleport magic circle in the corner and vanished. Carlton looked at me with a dumbfounded expression.
"...Ms. Han Jaeyeon?"
"That's how it is. See you."
I wanted to explain briefly, but with only 3 minutes left, I had to move.
I checked my inventory status and returned to the Dragon Star.
"Harmony!"
"Yes, Your Majesty! We've moved about half alrea—"
I grabbed Harmony by the scruff and placed her on top of Hwayangi's head.
"Follow me. No 'Your Majesty' talk... actually, just don't talk at all. Got it?"
"...Are we going to fight?"
"Yeah."
"Then hold on. Meow!"
At Harmony's cry, a gust of wind accompanied the highest-grade mic, Archangel, flying through the sky to land beside her. I nodded at the sight and stepped onto the teleport gate.
"To the Mercenary Office."
Flash!
The Mercenary Office I arrived at through space was in quite an uproar.
"Grab your gear!"
"What the hell is going on!"
As I watched the elders running around shouting, Gwan Mok-yeong, the top supervisor of the Mercenary Management Office, rushed over to me.
"You made it! Follow me. Only 2 minutes and 12 seconds until the next train."
"When's the one after?"
"7 days and 13 hours later. Miss this one, and you'll have to fly there on a battleship."
No choice—we had to take this one. I moved immediately.
"You're here."
"Good thing everyone's prompt. How many seats left?"
"Three left... oh, one just got reserved. Two now."
"Good. Fill the remaining with Tom Holiday and... what was that barrier master's name?"
"Han Seokdu."
"Yeah, Seokdu."
Surprisingly, the mercenary waiting room was empty of mercenaries.
Well, maybe not mercenaries exactly... they were beyond that.
"Oh, Jaeyeon showed up?"
"Lion Queen."
"Call me So-hyang sis. Man, what happened while I wasn't looking? I can't even gauge your level anymore."
Lion Queen Kim So-hyang whistled as she saw me, looking pleased. But I scanned the beings around her more than her.
'Plenty of familiar faces.'
A beautiful elf with prominent dark circles. She was the tower lord of the Fate Tower, Lucky Strike, who ended up with trillions in debt from failed investments.
What was surprising was the aide-like figure standing behind her.
'That guy's a Transcendent too.'
Unlike the strong Transcendent Lucky Strike, he was barely scraping into the Transcendent Realm, but having a Transcendent bodyguard was impressive.
But that was just the beginning.
"Long time no see... I've heard the stories, but your growth rate is unbelievable. Nothing like when I last saw you."
The man with the calm voice was Grand Summoner Heindel, tower lord of the Command Tower.
Unlike his previous visit for surgery, he was now fully armed in a pitch-black robe and what looked like a transcendent weapon staff.
Even more ridiculous were the two knights standing behind him.
'Crazy. Not one, but two Transcendent undead.'
And that wasn't all.
"Hah. Do I have to jump into real combat at my age?"
"Come on, you've been itching for a fight, haven't you?"
"Ah, I need to bring more from 34th Earth. All these kids, and when it comes down to it, everything falls on me..."
A brown-furred cat sat on a cushion, grooming itself. Choco, the Priyana from 34th Earth with a massive fanbase.
The CEO of Nutel, 34th Earth's global food conglomerate, was participating as a mercenary.
'What kind of CEO does this?'
And not just him.
"Alright! Time's up, gather in the center! Grandpa Choco! Don't stay back there, come to the middle!"
A handsome boy was directing everyone. He looked mid-teens at most, a pretty boy no one from 34th Earth would fail to recognize.
'Heavenly Slaughter Sword Ghost, Gwan Youngmin.'
If I was 34th Earth's third Transcendent, he was the first—excluding the Game Master.
The Game Master's older brother, who overcame the cursed Heavenly Slaughter Star's punishment to reach Transcendence.
Behind him stood eight masked figures.
'All Transcendents... I see. Those must be the [Prisoners] the elders captured alive.'
Not all renowned cosmic mercenaries who encountered Transcendents were friendly to 34th Earth. In fact, such cases were rare.
The greater cosmos had far more reckless, self-centered Transcendents who knew no fear. Worshipped as gods by lesser civilizations and rulers even among cosmic ones—why would they care about others?
These monsters, who valued their whims over millions of lives, naturally clashed with the elders. Many mercenary missions involved dealing with them.
'And many elders died in those fights.'
Naturally. No matter how elite the elders' average level, Transcendents were never to be underestimated.
But the number of elders active as cosmic mercenaries back then exceeded ten million.
All elite Gigas pilots beyond standard, plus the Game Master's apostles.
On top of that, millions of high-level ability users whose personal combat prowess far surpassed Perfecters!
Most Transcendents opposing the cosmic mercenaries didn't survive, and some endured the humiliation of capture.
The masked Transcendents brought by Heavenly Slaughter Sword Ghost Gwan Youngmin were surely them.
'Unreal...'
I gauged the forces gathering in the center of the magic circle. Rare Gigant masters in space, two elf Transcendents, Grand Summoner with two Transcendent undead, elder Priyana, Grand Sword Master leading eight Transcendents.
'This is the hasty mobilization from one planet?'
My chest swelled with grandeur at this unimaginable force.
Trrrring—!
A bizarre melody echoed. Mages operating complex machinery waved their hands.
The announcement blared.
[The train to Setan Planet in the Cherry Blossom Galaxy is approaching Setan Planet. Passengers, please lower your resistance and brace for warp impact.]
[Once again: The train to Setan Planet in the Cherry Blossom Galaxy is approaching Setan Planet. Passengers, please lower your resistance and brace for warp impact.]
As the announcement played, the floor's magic circle began to glow. The chatting Transcendents gathered in the center.
[The train to Setan Planet in the Cherry Blossom Galaxy has arrived at Setan Planet.]
[Initiating warp. 3. 2. 1...]
Flash!
The scenery changed in an instant. As I'd experienced before, I was now inside a luxurious train car.
Turning my head, I saw the pretty boy with a startled expression.
"Ah, Heavenly Slaughter Sword Ghost. Did just the two of us get separated?"
"...Huh? Oh, yeah. But how did we end up here? They divided by weight."
Looking around, only Youngmin and I had arrived in this car. I stroked Hwayangi and Harmony slinking up beside me and said,
"No idea. I just ended up here."
"No way."
Youngmin looked at me in disbelief.
"You're bare-handed without a Gigas?"
Just then, a complaint came from another seat.
"Did you charter the whole train? Keep it down!"
"Ah, sorry."
Youngmin bowed his head and sat down. I took the seat in front of me.
Probably because so many boarded at once, the conductor hadn't come yet, but our names were on the seats, so no confusion.
"Miri-ya, this isn't some regular train—why pick a fight? If noise bothers you, put up a sound barrier."
"But then I can't people-watch. It's not every day we ride this expensive train."
"Aigoo."
The bickering pair: a flashy red-haired beauty and an ordinary-looking man.
'These two seem no joke either.'
But since everyone on the Galaxy Express was like that, I ignored them and looked at Youngmin. To figure out why just he and I ended up separated, but oddly, Youngmin was staring at the two passengers, not me.
His large eyes sparkled.
'Someone he knows?'