Chapter 67
Chapter 67
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Translator: crow
Chapter Title: Luck Without Reason
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There are endless ways to deal with a dimensional scanner. You could weaken it with a weakening potion right away, buy intel to neutralize it, sell it to a shady dealer, or store it in multiple boxes and safes before sinking it into the deep ocean.
'Or I could just hand it over to Sarang and let her hack it. It seems like a machine, after all.'
But an even better idea came to mind. Before putting it into action, I stuffed my Void Pocket full of gold bars and headed to the Golden Omnipotent Corporation to learn about the rainbow-colored humans using the dimensional scanner.
"Welcome! VIP customer! I'm the branch manager, Suit Guy."
The one greeting me this time was Suit Guy.
Not the usual Suit Guy, but one with a stylish Kaiser mustache, giving off the vibe of a British gentleman.
"Impressive. The staff here all look identical except for gender, but you stand out, Branch Manager."
"Heh heh! It's thanks to my magnificent mustache. Managers and above get to have some personality."
"What about the previous attendant? On vacation?"
"No, your consistent business has raised your status to VIP, so I, the branch manager, am handling it personally. Your previous Suit Guy was promoted to deputy manager recently, so no need to worry."
This was my first transaction with a branch manager.
"It's called a dimensional scanner. I'd like information on the beings who made it. What's the price?"
"Normally ten tons of gold, but VIPs get 50% off, so just five tons."
I pulled five tons of gold bars from my Void Pocket. The previous Suit Guy might have dived right in or taken a bite, but the branch manager Suit Guy stroked his mustache, fanned the bars with his hand, and sniffed from afar.
"A fine aroma. Densely ripened gold."
Sometime while I wasn't looking, a wine glass filled with wine appeared on the table. The branch manager Suit Guy sliced a tiny piece from a gold bar with a butterfly knife and skewered it with a toothpick.
"Care to join me?"
"Wine for me."
No sooner had I spoken than an identical glass appeared before me.
'Pretty.'
I held the glass up to the fluorescent light. The wine glowed like a beautiful ruby, fading elegantly toward the rim.
'And the aroma is excellent.'
Ripe fruit scents brushed my nose, followed by the smell of earth after rain and a subtle cedar note, evoking the freshness of nature.
'And the taste is superb.'
A sip enveloped my tongue. Playful tannins teased both taste and smell, then the sweetness of cherry, grape, and blackcurrant soothed my battered senses. As it slid down my throat, nuances of chocolate and coffee created a sensation like salted silk, startling my stomach into a brief twitch.
"What's the wine?"
"Just a $4 bottle. Good wine would overpower the gold's true flavor."
The price and quality of food don't always match.
Who cares what others say? If it tastes good to me, that's enough.
"Excellent gold indeed. Now, for the information."
The branch manager Suit Guy, savoring the gold skewer with his wine, shared the intel I'd been after.
"The dimension your item hails from is the Photon Dimension. A realm where everything is made of light, making it impossible for beings from our side to perceive them."
"Because they're made of light."
"Yes. They have a civilization, and the one that made this device boasts the longest continuous history among them—36,000 centuries, by my knowledge. Their technology is accordingly advanced."
To confirm my plan, I asked about comparative advantages.
"If the Foundation were to fend off their invasion, how much power recovery would be needed? Based on peak strength."
"That's worth a kilogram of gold. VIPs get anything under ten kilos free, so here you go."
The branch manager Suit Guy raised a finger.
"Current levels: certain defeat. 30%: hold the line. 50%: strategic victory possible with effort. 70%: guaranteed win. 90%+: counter-invade and conquer their dimension."
Hard to say if it's the Foundation that's impressive or those dimension-dwellers.
"One last question."
I'd grasped the rough benchmarks. With one prep step for my plan complete, I threw in a personal query.
"Tell me about Dr. Janus."
"Two kinds of info on him: the well-known tale and the detailed one. Which?"
"The former?"
"Free. He's too famous for it to have value."
This was the first I'd learned about Dr. Janus.
"He's a super-dimensional doctor who roams all dimensions practicing medicine. No dimension he can't visit, no disease or injury he can't cure."
"He fixes everything?"
"Yes. Even death itself. And to him, machines are lifeforms too, so his tech skills are top-tier. The greatest doctor across all dimensions: Dr. Janus."
"And the detailed story?"
The branch manager Suit Guy named the price.
"One giga-ton of gold."
"Dong-wook, you free right now?"
-Yeah? Oh, sure. What's up?
After leaving the Golden Omnipotent Corporation, I called Kim Dong-wook to finalize my plan.
-Something wrong with Sarang Trading?
"No, that's handled. This is a follow-up: about the dimension the Foundation's currently at war with."
-Ah! The director was hoping to see you if you got the chance. Perfect timing!
A few hours later, Kim Dong-wook arrived at my place.
"Here to escort you! Special External Consultant!"
"External Special Consultant."
"Haha! New title, easy to mix up."
On the way to the Foundation, I got a situation update from Dong-wook.
"Beings from a nearby dimension just developed dimension travel tech, and our world was the first one their scan hit."
"Just a scan—why full-on war?"
"Intel says they're aggressive by nature. They developed dimension tech while working on hyper-warp to conquer other galaxies after dominating their own."
The rest was obvious without hearing more.
"So, since they found us, might as well invade."
"Yeah. We tried dimension exchange requests and diplomacy multiple times, but their heads are full of conquest. They even killed our diplomats!"
"Killing diplomats... Hmm, that aggressive..."
No guilt if dialogue is impossible.
Finally, their forces.
"Objectively, how do the power levels compare?"
"Our tech has a slight edge overall, but their combat tech edges us out slightly, and their numbers are incomparable."
"A species ruling a galaxy would have hordes."
"So we're going defensive with dimension barriers and all."
"Dong-wook."
And the most important part.
"What do these guys look like?"
"Photo here."
The photo showed a human in uniform.
"Look just like us, right? Maybe that's why they're so aggressive."
"Dong-wook."
We'd arrived at the Foundation just then.
"I've got a great idea."
Every item in the world has its use.
"What? Pardon?"
"Chuck this into their dimension and mash the button—it'll end the war."
I showed Seong Yu-ra the dimensional scanner, keeping that maxim in mind.
"Pressing this button has a 1/100 chance of sending info to a higher dimension, at which point the light beings will..."
After my rough explanation, she stared blankly at the scanner.
"With Foundation tech, sneaking one of these into their dimension is easy, right? And rigging a robot to auto-mash the button..."
"Yes, feasible, but... is this real?"
"Real."
"It sounds like a higher-dimension summoner. Where'd you get it? How do you even know its function?"
"Stumbled into it."
I kept Blue Moon's info out. No need—they might treat me as an entity. Ignorance is bliss sometimes.
"Hmm, I'll trust you. No downside for us."
Less than a day later, a tiny robot for the scanner was ready.
"This'll hang on and mash the button. 100 presses per second, so per your explanation, it'll trigger fast on their side."
"Perfect. Mind if I watch?"
"Sure."
The rocket carrying the scanner launched. It pierced a wormhole from high altitude to another dimension and vanished from our side.
"Camera still works across dimensions?"
The robot and scanner floated in space—likely their dimension, their galaxy.
"Sephirot-linked inter-dimensional cable."
Whispers from nearby scientists.
"A tiny gadget summoning higher beings?"
"Three issues. Scans show it's dead simple—no structure for higher-dimension contact. Second, can those summoned beat them? Third, untested—how do you know the function?"
"But considering the entity's uniqueness..."
Half belief, half trust, the machine activated.
『Button... pressed! Wadadadadot!』
Someone's quirky touch: the little machine chattered as it mashed the button wildly. Moments later, the scanner emitted a brilliant light and vanished from the screen.
"Done."
"Wha—what's that..."
Beyond the screen, clusters of light appeared.
"Uh? Uh?"
Hundreds of millions of light clusters engulfed the galaxy.
"This is insane..."
Everything wrapped up in five days.
Beyond the screen, a peaceful galaxy shone. But the wreckage of countless machines floating there was anything but peaceful.
"Never link dimensions again!"
"They might scan us!"
"No scans beyond Sephirot, no matter what!"
Details were unclear. But the light clusters crushed the galaxy fleet, then scattered across the stars, landing on planets. The outcome was obvious.
'Ended sooner than expected.'
Similar tech to the Foundation, but overwhelming numbers—I figured months, not under a week.
'Not researchers, then.'
Come to think of it, only researchers had attacked the Foundation?
If they have society, there'd be mercenaries or soldiers beyond researchers. This was probably their military.
'They have society too.'
Anyway, two birds with one stone.
"I'll head out now."
"Huh? Oh, sure! Seung-hoon, stay a bit..."
"Company and fixer work. Oh, two favors?"
"What?"
"Sarang Trading's welfare might draw too many with the buzz and media. Handle that, and give me a ride home?"
Dong-wook drove me home on Seong Yu-ra's orders.
"Thanks to you, war's over easy. Thought 'fixer' was just entity perception tweak, but it's real."
"Planned to use the title only at first, but I'm growing fond of fixer work."
Chatting idly, we reached home.
"Haven't done much fixer work lately."
Time to head back to the office.
'Company was too rushed.'
Instant chairman—no more interest in it.
'This is why hardcore gamers play weak builds for fun.'
I asked Sarang about the company.
"Sarang, with my current assets, how long can Sarang Trading's welfare last? Assuming no more gains."
『446 years.』
"If you're managing my assets?"
『Forever, until Lee Seung-hoon cancels it.』
Can maintain indefinitely, then.
"No internet buzz on Sarang Trading?"
『Recent synth debates, impossibility claims, noise marketing—all deleted. Foundation involvement suspected.』
"No new hires?"
『High-dimensional perception shift applied. Company perceived as major corp equivalent; welfare as common sense. Regular recruitment viable.』
"Foundation did the perception shift?"
『Yes. Applied precisely 3 hours, 14 minutes, 37 seconds ago.』
Still at the Foundation then. Faster than expected.
『Lee Seung-hoon, your goal is achieved. No further need for excess Sarang Trading investment. Why maintain with Foundation aid?』
"You know this world could end anytime from an entity?"
『Acknowledged.』
I smiled at Sarang's question.
"Just want a bit of reasonless luck in this world to counter the reasonless misfortune."