Chapter 261
Chapter 261
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 260
Chapter Title: Familiar Faces on the Galactic Railway
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'Is that someone he knows?'
Sure enough, Youngmin dashes toward them as if they're old acquaintances.
"Lancelot hyung!"
"Huh, where'd you come from... Ah! You're that dimension-hopping high school kid, right?"
"High school kid... Oh, Youngmin."
"Long time no see!"
They start chatting amiably with big smiles. Naturally, as the third wheel, all I can do is stand there awkwardly watching.
'Not from the 34th Earth, so maybe they met while he was working as a cosmic mercenary?'
From my seat, I watch the two of them talking with Youngmin. They both look like Transcendents, but the vibes they give off are completely different.
The red-haired woman in her mid-to-late twenties exudes so little battle aura that it's hard to believe she's a Transcendent, while the man feels razor-sharp, like facing a drawn blade, even though he seems perfectly calm.
'The woman... she's a production-type Transcendent.'
Even in the vast universe, they're incredibly rare.
Reaching the Transcendent Realm outside of combat requires a miraculous convergence of factors: profound and unique enlightenment, lifelong arduous training, deep backstories, heaven-touching talent, and more. It's just not common.
Out of 100 Transcendents, 90 are combat-types, and among the remaining 10, production-types number only one or two. And they boast insane productivity on top of that—how rare can they get?
"I figured I'd run into someone from the 34th Earth eventually since this is their Galactic Railway, but meeting like this by chance..."
"You rode the Galactic Railway with over ten people? Wow, those fares aren't cheap."
Watching them chat happily, I think to myself.
'But the really unusual one is the guy.'
I gaze at the man called Lancelot, who's conversing calmly with Youngmin. But that's all—just that. I can't even guess his ability type.
'No read on him. Not a mid-tier Transcendent, surely.'
He looks like a Transcendent. And like an ordinary guy.
Weaker than me. And something I can't ignore.
'The universe really is vast. Every kind of case imaginable.'
It's intriguing, but no need to dwell on it.
The Galactic Railway crosses the immense universe, so even bumping into them like this means our operational zones are worlds apart.
The endlessly vast universe.
In this monstrous space where millions of light-years are a joke, meeting at all is nearly miraculous.
"Meow."
A low mewl turns my head. On my seat, Hayangi and Harmony have automatically miniaturized and are sitting there.
"It's the Galactic Railway."
"Meow!"
I shake my head at Harmony's startled expression.
"Just speak normally. Everyone here seems to recognize what you are anyway."
Sure enough, the people around have all noticed Harmony's extraordinary nature.
"Whoa, what is that? A soul golem? Or some unique Legion?"
"Its spirit rank isn't ordinary. Looks like Transcendent Realm at least."
At their reactions, Youngmin beckons me over.
"Haha. This is the dark horse that emerged from my planet recently! Name's Han Jaeyeon. Han Jaeyeon-ssi. These two are the ones who helped me out when I was a kid. Lancelot-nim and Cruze-nim."
"Ah, hello."
"Hm. I'll chat with them a bit, so why don't you go hear the mission briefing from Sohyang-nim? I messed up the team assignments a little."
"Because of the Giggas?"
"Yeah, because of the Giggas. Anyway, without a Giggas... Eh, I'm sure you have your reasons. See ya!"
He waves me off dismissively, pure face-saving. I chuckle dryly and turn away.
"Wa— I mean, Jaeyeon-nim. We're really out in space now, right?"
"Yeah. And heading to a really far-off place."
"Wow..."
Harmony climbs onto the armrest and taps the wall to adjust the display. Beyond it, the stars streak by rapidly.
"The stars are moving away super fast."
"It's an old Galactic Railway in service for ages. Probably over a million times lightspeed? Not sure exactly... Anyway, just enjoy the view for now."
I leave Harmony on my seat and manipulate my mercenary badge to raise a partition. As I head to the next car, miniaturized Hayangi bobs along behind me.
"Hmm. Looks like over ten people boarded at the last stop."
"Whoa, really? I've been riding for two months and never seen more than three at once. Must be from a super wealthy civilization."
"34th Earth."
"Oh, the 34th Earth."
A flame-wreathed spirit-like being and a winged woman with a halo ring above her head whisper among themselves.
I glance at the ten sprawling wings on the wide seat before passing by.
'Angels in the material realm... I always think it, but the Galactic Railway really has every kind of being aboard.'
Not one of those famous Archangels, but probably just below that level.
'What if a demon duke hops on next?'
Of course not. Unlike the heavens, which have limited exchanges with the Alliance, the demon realm is hostile to nearly every faction.
It's legal to behead and core them on sight, so they wouldn't show up on a top-god-operated Galactic Railway.
Clank.
As I open the door to cross via the connecting passage to the next car—
"Ah, Jaeyeon-ah, there you are."
Sarang steps out through the door.
"You really came?"
"I said I would."
"Even so, right after hitting Transcendent Realm..."
I chuckle wryly and scan her outfit. Like me, she's in a suit, but the contents are entirely different.
'Fully geared up.'
I eye the pulsing blue energy cores in her earrings and necklace.
They're Lightning Hearts, typically used in mass-produced Giggas or military weapons. The items themselves aren't surprising, but miniaturizing tech meant for large electromagnetic systems to accessory size? I've never heard of such a thing.
And it's not just accessories.
An extraordinary aura flows from her entire suit, her white gloves are unmistakably made from dragon hide, her black shoes resonate with the shadow at her feet.
And above all.
"Hey, no way this is..."
I sense some entity [linked] to her.
"Borrowed it from Dad. He has more money than he knows what to do with."
"You're seriously telling me you borrowed a Goldrian?"
A Giggas's value skyrockets with its grade, surpassing even stars at the top end—prices beyond ordinary Transcendent weapons.
Especially the golden constellation-grade Goldrian: no special conditions to build, but the sheer wealth required makes it a treasure even empire-class civilizations struggle to produce one or two of.
"If it's my daughter asking, how could he say no? Especially now that you've reached the Transcendent Realm he's always dreamed of for you."
"Haha, yeah right."
As I laugh hollowly in disbelief, the partition door opens and Sohyang appears.
She startles upon seeing Sarang.
"Sarang-ah?"
"Sohyang unni! Long time no see."
Sohyang grimaces at Sarang's beaming, familiar smile.
"Whoa... You really became a Transcendent. I'm dying of jealousy here. I've killed who knows how many on the battlefield and trained for years, but you, who was running a business, beats me to it? Makes no sense."
"Aw, come on. You just lacked a bit of talent."
Sohyang's eyebrow twitches at Sarang's playful jab.
"What was that?"
"Eek! Unni, let go, it hurts!"
After tormenting Sarang a bit, Sohyang turns to me.
"Thanks for joining the mission. We'll be running ops together... You sure you're okay without a Giggas? I could lend you an In-Grade one."
Everyone who sees me worries about the same thing. Makes sense—we're heading into space combat, and one team member's going in bare-handed.
But I genuinely don't need a Giggas.
'It's just shackles to me.'
The pinnacle of personal armament, the apex of space weaponry history. Tougher than anything, a shield and massive weapon in one.
Yet to me, it's weaker than the rider, less durable, output lacking—a mere restraint.
Proven with the Giggas from Ardania Castle and Gigas Land.
Why ride something that shatters if I get excited and flex?
'A god-grade Giggas might be different... But even castle-grade is pointless, let alone In-Grade.'
"I'm good. Doesn't suit me."
"Giggas are great, but... You're no rookie, so no need for me to meddle."
Sohyang quickly gives up and explains the situation.
"Luckily, the destination isn't far. Eight hours and we'll be there."
"Any additional support?"
The situation's urgent, so the unit's made of Transcendents, but the 34th Earth's true [strength] lies in the grades below: top performers.
Out of 11 billion on the 34th Earth, 300 million are so-called [elders], over 100 million still active.
Transcendents are strong, but 100 million Giggas riders surpassing perfected realm? Even thousands of Transcendents would flee that disaster.
A horde of high-rank ability users on Giggas is terrifying.
But Sohyang shakes her head.
"There might be, but we fight like it's just us. Galactic Railway, eight hours... A normal warship with astral drive would take ten days."
"True, transporting large forces via Galactic Railway is impossible."
Even if the 34th Earth has money to burn, it's excessive—and there aren't enough seats. Half the passengers are Transcendents for a reason.
'Follow-up units are basically insurance.'
"Adjust your condition as best you can for the next eight hours. I'll update the op details as new intel comes in."
"Got it."
Sohyang heads to the next car, leaving just me and Sarang. She speaks in a calm voice.
"Anyway, you okay? First time on a big op like this."
"No issue."
I shrug. Honestly, no tension at all about the scale. Overly relaxed, worryingly so.
Sarang, on the other hand, seems a bit tense.
"First time on the Galactic Railway in 20 years. Never thought it'd lead straight to real combat."
"...Come to think of it, the chairman didn't say anything?"
His daughter's jumping into war out of nowhere. But like me, Sarang just shrugs.
"Actually, this is what Dad wanted. Managing Nemesis cut our time together by half anyway..."
Seems there's some backstory. I nod and say,
"Don't get too reckless."
"Hehe. Worried about me?"
"You just hit Transcendent Realm. Dying right away would suck."
Eight hours flew by.
I downloaded the tactical network to Hayangi, and all participating Transcendents logged in.
Including the two Youngmin invited via connections.
Bold//-Lancelot: Freeride point's closer than the original station. Good to clear nearby monsters too.
-Cruze: Grab the drop items from our kills!//
[Next stop: B-11 Sector. Passengers disembarking, please use the right-side doors.]
[Repeat: Arriving at B-11 Sector in 58 minutes 51 seconds.]
No station at the destination, so all Transcendents freeride.
We're using the freeride device this time. Government's footing the bill—no reason to skimp.
[Initiating warp. 3. 2. 1...]
Flash!
We cross space. As planned, we arrive smack in the middle of countless warships surrounding three enemy vessels.
[Warlord Constellation. Warlord.]
[Loading... Complete.]
[Golden Constellation. Goldrian.]
[Deploy!]
Space rifts, revealing a 20-meter obsidian giant and a similarly sized golden giant. That's our cue.
"Come on! Napoleon!"
"Kim Yushin!"
"Samyeong Grandmaster!"
In-Grade Giggas pour in from all sides. Everyone handles them, no matter their abilities—swordsmen, mages, summoners, spirit users, all mounted.
Even.
"Sandrina sunbae, come out nyang~"
A massive cat materializes in the void, yawning hugely as it swallows Choco whole.
I groan at the black-sheened, rare-metal feline Giggas.
"Ah, Choco-nim rides a Giggas too."
Wait, isn't that cat-grade, not In-Grade?
Feeling oddly betrayed,
I hurl my bare body into space.