■■■ ■■ ■■■■ ■■■■ ■■ -1-
The first invasion had been successfully completed.
"Congratulations, seobangnim."
"Congratulations, Master-nim!!"
"Just as expected of Papa!!"
"It was an incredibly efficient and effective strategy. As expected of the Allfather."
"It was only natural that you would succeed, User-nim. As expected of a top 1% user."
Having succeeded in taking 99% of the Terakanta Prodiums under their control by using idols, Omega's five closest wives poured out an excessive amount of praise, as always.
Well, since that was practically an innate trait of the beings created after the Prodium betrayal, he had long since learned to take it in stride.
I let their praise go in one ear and out the other, intending to analyze this operation through a cosmic-scale simulation in my mind, identify areas for improvement, and apply them to future invasions.
'This time, we were able to conquer them so quickly thanks to the unique backdoor Terakanta had in its idols and Muse Energy.'
Without that, the Prodiums' Meme Defense Mechanism would have meant that, no matter how quickly the operation proceeded, it would have taken at least four days in perceived time.
But this time, thanks to that backdoor, we finished the conquest in half the time.
'Some of my split-thinking capacity is currently devoted to analyzing that Meme Defense Mechanism, but...'
There had been some progress, but I still hadn't reached the point where I could freely manipulate minds as I could with targets who lacked meme technology.
Still, buying the relevant equipment or hiring a meme technology expert would ultimately come down to a matter of cost.
Besides, there were plenty of other ways to subdue and enslave the Prodiums, so I'd temporarily put it lower on the priority list.
Anyway,
"Well, then. Let's get started in earnest on turning this planet and microcosm into a base, and processing slaves for sale."
"Yes! I'll immediately draw up a budget, assign materials, and devise a development plan for the microcosm as well."
"Hehe~ Leave it to me~ I'll build a temporary temple below where Master-nim can stay in comfort."
"I'll make sure the slaves are properly conditioned so Papa and the humans can use them conveniently!"
"I'll select personnel to dispatch to the next microcosms and report back!"
"We'll deploy spy satellites according to plan and gather information on the Prodium civilizations in each microcosm before the invasion."
If we manipulated the microcosm's time axis so that about a hundred years passed inside for every second of Earth time, the work would be finished in no time.
After that, while personally overseeing the base-construction work, I planned to detach some of my forces and deploy a squad to invade the other nearby microcosms.
The plan was set.
Now it was time to get moving.
◆◆◆
Ten years had passed by the microcosm's internal time since Terakanta was completely conquered.
In that time, countless things had disappeared and changed.
Most of the traces of the Prodium civilization that had once covered Terakanta's surface had also been erased.
Everything had been removed except for some heritage deemed worth preserving, and facilities kept for strategic or technological reasons—or for Omega's personal needs.
The same went for Prodium culture and industry.
Most of it was ultimately nothing more than an inferior imitation of 21st-century human culture, and above all, as the majority of Prodiums lost their free will and became slaves, it had naturally declined and faded away.
But some of it was deliberately preserved at Omega's discretion.
And one of the things that had been preserved was—
-Bbambbam~
"The only news granted to us slave livestock by the great and merciful Master Omega! The swift messenger who delivers Master-nim's divine words! This is Donna Vermilion of SNN!!"
It was a news station that had luckily survived, even as all the broadcasting stations disappeared once television was no longer needed.
There was nothing complicated about why it had survived.
First, its lead announcer, Donna Vermilion, was every bit as beautiful as an idol.
Among the slaves, she had earned considerable favor alongside the Stella Heart members. At the same time, she was so talented as an announcer that it would have been a waste to use her as nothing more than a decorative ornament and plaything.
Second, there was a need to pass along news from around the planet to the 2nd and 3rd Class Citizens under Omega's command who had come to Terakanta, as well as to the slaves granted limited autonomy.
And lastly, Omega found it quite amusing to watch slaves proudly rattle the chains they wore as they spread propaganda to other slaves—a black comedy of sorts.
"Now, for our first story!"
The tone of announcer Donna's voice was as gentle and friendly as it had been before she became a slave, but now it carried a curious mix of sensuality and menace.
"It's about the 2nd Class Citizen in my belly!!"
-Seukseuk
As she hosted the broadcast, she announced news about her own condition, proudly showing off her lewd body dressed in nothing but a gold bikini as she lovingly stroked her swollen, full-term belly.
Among the slaves, she was quite favored by Omega, so she was often summoned to his bedroom or offered unusual services by his side.
As a result, she had become pregnant.
Considering that human semen generally had a rather low implantation rate because mortal ovum had trouble withstanding it, hers was a remarkably lucky case (?).
"According to Hive-nim, who is in charge of my health care, the birth date is..."
Donna went on at length about the progress of her pregnancy.
"It seems the name of the 2nd Class Citizen in my belly will be Donia, a name chosen by Master Omega. Sadly, since I'm a slave, I can't raise a 2nd Class Citizen, so the baby will be sent to a nursery as soon as she's born..."
At the end, she stroked her belly once more, as if regretful.
It was only natural. As a legal slave, she had no right to raise a 2nd Class Citizen.
The child was to grow up in a dedicated nursery for Omega's children in the Omega Galaxy, under the protection of beings with citizenship.
"Once I give birth to the 2nd Class Citizen in my belly, I'll do my best to get pregnant with another 2nd Class Citizen!"
Even though she couldn't raise her own child, Donna felt no anger or resentment.
Instead, the possibility of carrying her Master's child again filled her with even greater joy and excitement.
To her, absolute loyalty and obedience to her Master came before even maternal love.
Anyway, after wrapping up her daily pregnancy report,
"On to our next story! At long last, today is the day of the Harvest Festival, scheduled to take place once every ten years!"
Donna began delivering the next news story.
The Harvest Festival.
The name sounded like an ordinary festival, but the event carried an ominous air.
"For the First Harvest Festival, the idol slaves have already been deployed to the site under Master-nim's orders, and according to local reports, the harvesting is proceeding smoothly!"
-Seuk
After saying that, Donna rose from her seat, her full-term body in tow.
For an ordinary woman, moving at this stage of pregnancy would have been difficult, but as a female slave favored by Omega, she had received a considerable degree of physical enhancement.
Thanks to that, she could still move naturally, almost as easily as before she became pregnant.
"Then, from here, I'll be heading straight to the scene of the action!! I'll bring you a vivid report in person!"
And immediately after she finished speaking—
-Pyororong!!
A small device equipped with spatial-translocation technology instantly activated. Within the Infinite Human Empire, the technology had become so widespread that any group of creations with a certain degree of technological capability used it in their daily lives.
A blue light enveloped Donna, and she vanished from the broadcast studio in an instant.
A few seconds later, when the spatial transfer ended, Donna reappeared—
-Hwiuung~
"We've arrived!! Slave livestock, this is Pasture Number Four, where this year's Harvest Festival is being held!!"
It was a place where one of the most prosperous cities on Terakanta had once stood.
But now, after all its residents had been taken away as slaves and the area abandoned, only a vast wasteland and ruins remained.
What the place had once been called no longer mattered.
Omega, his citizens, and the slaves now referred to it simply as 'Pasture Number Four,' according to its current purpose.
-Thud!!
-Bang!!
-Kwa-gwa-gwang!!
-Tudududududu!!
"Ahh!! Can you see that over there!! The Harvest Festival is in full swing, and we can hear the explosions and gunfire caused by those foolish Prodiums all the way over here!!"
Just as Donna said, explosions, enormous booms, and gunfire echoed without pause throughout the ruins of the city.
The city, already badly damaged by years of neglect, was being further destroyed by the fighting.
The reason was simple.