Chapter 161

47. Cosmic Disaster (2)

Space Battleship! Jin-woo looked up at the battleship with admiration sparkling in his eyes. The white form of the vessel cut through the black universe, possessing a vastly different level of beauty compared to watching a boat rocking to and fro on the sea.

It was incredible that such a thing could come out of Young-hoon’s imagination. The side story was a mess, but it was worth reading as the things inside were implemented. However, it would also be a little different from the sci-fi written by experts. Even Jin-woo, who didn’t enjoy sci-fi, sensed it.

Jin-woo checked the ship’s information.

[C] Alice-level Frigate

An escort ship protecting the passenger ship on which the investigation team was on board. It was dispatched to investigate the Great Rift. The passenger ship is headed towards the Great Rift at the request of the Lainez Kingdom.

This Alice-level Frigate is equipped with a special engine newly developed in the Lainez Kingdom and is designed with a sleek shape different from existing battleships. It is also called the space diving beetle.

*[C] Mana Engine

*[C] Energy Beam

It was a frigate with long guns protruding from the bow of the vessel.

‘Well, it’s pretty cool to see it in person.’

The passenger ship holding the investigation team was positioned between the frigates. It was much larger than either of its escorts, with an elegant design.

‘As expected, it’s better to close it.’

Those things almost appeared on the moon. If those frigates headed toward Earth, Earth would be helpless. Looking at the information from the frigates, they were able to navigate freely in the atmosphere of outer space, from which they could fully use their combat capabilities.

Of course, that was the story if Jin-woo wasn’t there. If they did come through the rift, he could smash them and send them back.

‘Should I wait and watch first?’

The Demon’s Eye wouldn’t open now unless Jin-woo allowed it, and he wondered what kind of investigation they were conducting. At the same time, he needed to discover more about this side story. Because the side story was free, the time zone and setting were in line according to the story progression, but as in other dimensions, there would be a correction based on reality.

Jin-woo floated through space. Since he had already had experience with it around Earth, he could emit his mana to move quickly. He boarded the passenger ship with ease. It felt pretty good to step on something, and the heavy gravity of the passenger ship pulled him down. After all, people had to live on the ground.

Jin-woo stood on the passenger ship and stared straight ahead.

‘This is spectacular. I want to show it to my subordinates.’

Stars and planets were visible in the distance. A giant planet, on a similar scale with Jupiter, with swirling red gases greeted him as the closest. There used to be a time when the word Jupiter Phobia or Muxiphobia was popular. Wouldn’t humans be overwhelmed by the pressure when they see something like that with their own eyes?

Some of his subordinates had lived for a long time, and each had gone through all sorts of hardships, but they would still probably admire this scene.

‘Shall I go in?’

Jin-woo wanted to go inside a gas planet like Jupiter. He was curious how it would feel. It was a pity that he had something to do for now, but he decided to try it another time. Jin-woo took out a chair from the subspace and looked around.

Someone in a spacesuit came out of the ship before too long, riding on something that looked like a rather large kickboard. She appeared to be an engineer, carrying a bag full of repair tools. The engineer brought out a navigation system to track damage to the vessel. But, as she followed the point on the screen, she naturally grew closer to Jin-woo.

As she approached the damaged area, the engineer began to produce her repair tools. And then, turning her head, she noticed Jin-woo sitting in a chair. She tilted her head, blinked several times, and stared at him. After all, humans could not survive in space without a spacesuit.

[Huh?]

[What’s the matter?]

[T-there’s a person…]

[Here you go again. Does that ghost only appear to you? I’ll take a nap, so just post a report when I wake up.]

The engineer communicated with her superior. She tried not to look at Jin-woo, then took a deep breath again and glanced over at him again. Jin-woo was still there. Her eyes met with Jin-woo’s through the helmet.

He lowered his gaze and looked at the chair.

‘Ah…’

The end of the chair was embedded on the passenger ship’s surface since he had set it down a little hard. Since the passenger ship was so large and the surface armor was thick, Jin-woo thought this kind of scratch would be okay, but the engineers running the vessel were more thorough than he thought.

Jin-woo awkwardly raised his hand to greet her.

[Kyaaaaaaaa!]

The engineer dropped her equipment and passed out.

‘Oh, my…’

Jin-woo was at a loss. When he moved closer to check on the engineer, her face was pale, and her eyes had already rolled up into their sockets. It was as if she had seen something very terrifying. Jin-woo made a flame and soldered the part closed that was dug out because of his chair.

“I should send her back, right?”

It would be a big deal if she died because Jin-woo left her alone. After thinking for a while, he decided to move the engineer to a safe place. A small spaceship – a repair craft – appeared a little further away. She came from the ship on that.

Jin-woo climbed into the repair craft but was immediately greeted by various buttons and screens. He found one button blinking, feeling a strong urge to press it.

‘Well, it should be fine.’

After all, he was very lucky. He pressed the button.

[Automatic return engaged.]

‘As expected of sci-fi.’

The arrow keys flickered, and the repair craft began to move automatically. Something boiled up in his chest, and Jin-woo thought that sci-fi wasn’t that bad either. The repair craft docked with the ship. As clean air flooded the vessel, Jin-woo took the engineer’s helmet and carried her off the repair craft. Then, he secretly slipped away and moved to a crowded place.

This ship was a passenger ship with researchers who investigated the Great Rift with a special request from the Lainez Kingdom. It was difficult to move recklessly because it was an area outside the Lainez System and adjacent to the Delox Empire; they had been provided with armed escorts. Though, the passenger ship was somewhat free because it belonged to the neutral Space Federation.

The great forces in the side story were the Space Federation created by a coalition of smaller forces, the Lainez Kingdom, and the Delox Empire. Each force was intertwined with the other; barely maintaining a balance.

“Oh…”

Perhaps because it was a passenger ship, the inside was well-decorated and comfortable. There was a sky made of holograms to mimic the blue Earth. Besides that, there were numerous buildings inside the ship set to resemble a city. There were department stores where you could shop, restaurants, swimming pools, and even casinos.

There were quite a few people on board the passenger ship, each walking around the streets in costumes that would be only seen in sci-fi movies. Only Jin-woo was wearing a completely different style of clothing, so attention was naturally drawn to him.

“Oh my, that’s old-fashioned.”

“Which noble house does he come from?”

“Isn’t he from the Delox Empire?”

Still, he wasn’t treated like a weirdo. In modern times, his outdated clothing was regarded as sophisticated.

‘Umm…’

Now that he was here, he couldn’t stay still. Jin-woo exchanged dimensional gold coins for credit chips, the currency issued by the Delox Empire. It could also be used in the Galactic Union or the Lainez Kingdom. It had to go through currency exchange, but Jin-woo didn’t have to worry about it because it was automatically exchanged when he paid.

He walked around the shopping street, buying everything he saw that was even mildly interesting. Of particular note, he thought the small computers were impressive. Jin-woo thought it would be fine if he gave it to Se-yeon.

After thinking about it, he started to choose gifts for the others. Upon entering a clothing store, the clerk followed Jin-woo around.

“If you are going to give it to your lover, this is perfect!”

[-] Pink Night’s Secretary Suit.

A suit with an automatic detachment function. You can dress with a strict vibe for daily wear, or you can press the switch to change to a hotter look. It is currently popular with young officers.

Jin-woo suddenly thought of Yoo-na. Then he smiled and shook his head.

“If you don’t like it, then we have something else…”

“Give me everything from there to here.”

“Yes, yes?”

When he handed over the credit chip, the clerk accepted it with trembling hands and wide eyes.

“I-I’ll take you to the VIP room!”

“It’s fine.”

Jin-woo left the clothing store with a full shopping pack. After storing it in his subspace, he continued shopping.

‘I wish I could get a ship, too…’

If he went to a place that sold ships later, he wanted to buy one. He didn’t mean to do anything with them, but he wanted to set them up by type on the other side of the moon and enjoy them, like collecting figurines.

It was a rewarding shopping trip. He didn’t even have to change his clothes. To be honest, the space fashion was still a little too much for Jin-woo to accept.

“Should I collect some information now?”

Jin-woo headed to a nearby crowded bar. There were men with mechanical arms and women in unusual costumes milling about, but the music was unusually classical. Though it felt slightly dissonant at first, it went well together.

Jin-woo sat close to the bartender, taking out his credit chip and placed it on the bar top. When he ordered the most expensive drink, the bartender served it with a grin.

‘Umm…’

What was brought out was a glass with large eyeballs floating inside.

[D] Lucta’s

Whiskey with Lucta eyes. At one time, it boasted a reputation as a drink that brings despair because every time celebrities drink Lucta’s, a big event happens. The price is quite high because it needs Lucta eyes, a space-level endangered species. Only a few licensed artisans can make it.

Price: 5 million credits / 1 glass

The monetary unit was similar to the Earth, so it was around 500,000 won per glass. Everyone in the hall looked at Jin-woo. After all, it was a drink that was rarely seen. Jin-woo picked up the glass and drank it.

‘Oh…’

It was pretty good. The eyeball itself was like jelly, which brought out the flavor of the drink.

“What do you think?”

“It’s good.”

“Thank you. You seem like a nobleman; are you from the Delox Empire?”

“I come from farther away.”

“I see.”

The bartender was pretty friendly. He had a strongman’s aura about him, but he was a pretty decent guy. Jin-woo decided to ask about the investigation team.

“The route has been changed due to the investigation, so the schedule has been delayed by about a day. All of them are being paid by the Lainez Kingdom supposedly.”

“Is it worth it?”

“Haha, I don’t know about that. After all, it’s hard to live these days. There’s no time to care about that.”

“It’s the same everywhere you live.”

“That’s right. Even though the universe is vast, people live the same way.”

Jin-woo extracted information from the bartender. Seeing that the Delox Empire hadn’t shown any special movements, it seemed things weren’t as far along as the story.

“Ah! It is said that the spaceship carrying the investigation team has just returned. We will soon be able to enter the Lainez System.”

“I see.”

The bartender even asked around to gather some information about the situation. Satisfied, Jin-woo stood from his seat and handed a credit chip to the bartender.

“Lucta’s, that was great. Please treat everyone here.”

“What? Ah… t-thank you.”

When Lucta’s was distributed to everyone, the bar was instantly filled with cheers. Wouldn’t despair come because he treated such a drink to dozens of people? Jin-woo grinned. If such a superstition existed, the universe would’ve collapsed earlier. The Demon’s Eye didn’t change much, and everything was fine.

‘Shall I go back to the moon base for now?’

It was when he thought so-

Boom!

The floor rumbled with a crash. The holographic sky disappeared, and a red light replaced it. The phrase ‘emergency evacuation’ popped up everywhere. People began to scream.

[We’ll guide you to an emergency shelter!]

[Stay calm and evacuate!]

[This is a real emergency!]

Drones flitted about, guiding people to emergency shelters.

“Please go to the shelter!”

“Hurry up!”

Gwooooong!

Another shock rippled through the ship. All the staff moved out to evacuate the guests, including the friendly bartender.

Gggrrrrrrrkkk!

The ceiling collapsed, and rubble fell. Jin-woo saw the engineer he met on the ship’s surface, the woman with red hair, stunned as she looked up at the ceiling.

“M-miss! I-if you stand there.. i-it’s dangerous!!”

The bartender shouted. A huge piece of wreckage came crashing down on the engineer. She watched it blankly, not even thinking of avoiding it. Even if she tried, it was already too late.

Jin-woo moved next to her.

Smack!

When he lightly hit it with the back of his hand, the rubble was tossed off to the side and crashed into a wall. The engineer and bartender stared blankly at him.

“Let’s avoid the danger first.”

When Jin-woo looked at him, the bartender, snapping to his senses, guided the engineer to the shelter. She still wore a blank expression, unable to believe what she had just seen. Everyone disappeared in an instant as the evacuation proceeded smoothly. Soon, another shock hit the vessel.

Baaaang!

A huge hole tore in the ceiling, exposing the inside of the ship to the vacuum of space. The rubble pulled upward tore it open even further.

‘Umm, is it a raid?’

Jin-woo looked at the ceiling quietly; then, he jumped up out of the hole. Now standing on the ship, he could see a fierce battle was going on. Gray battleships with skull marks attacked the frigates and fired shells at the passenger ships. Small fighters were floating around and firing in a frenzy.

They were outdated weapons compared to the frigates, but their numbers were no joke.

‘So, it’s pirates.’

Space Pirates! They had also appeared in the side story. The heroine was one, and the protagonist also entrusted himself to the pirates for a while. They were pretty cool, but they were still pirates.

Whoosh!

A huge cannonball sailed toward Jin-woo. He watched it approach in slow-motion, then reached out and grabbed it.

Smash!

It crumbled as Jin-woo caught it. Now he could see it was a shell designed to pierce the ship’s shield and shatter its armor.

Jin-woo took off his coat and stretched out his wrists and ankles. After warming up his stiff neck, he looked at the pirate fighters flying around. Jin-woo smiled slightly at the sight of them veering to and from wildly. The ship’s armor distorted below Jin-woo’s feet, crumpling as he kicked off.

Thud!

Jin-woo’s figure grew into a blur and stretched out at a tremendous speed. His body pierced one of the pirate fighters instantly, and he landed on the wing of another.

[W-what?!]

Indeed, what was it? It’s the Great Emperor. Jin-woo looked down at the cockpit. The pirate was bewildered when he saw Jin-woo smiling with his hand raised.

Thud!

The tempered glass and armor surrounding the cockpit couldn’t withstand him.

“K-keaaaargh!”

The pirate was sucked into space. Jin-woo entered the open cockpit and sat down. All the warning signs were flashing red, but it wasn’t a big problem. He hit a few buttons, but it wouldn’t move. Jin-woo raised the power of domination, changing the fighter ship into a new form.

‘Umm…’

It stretched out, growing longer, and thorns sprouted out. It was fine up to that point.

‘It’s a bit…’

Wiggle-wiggle! Paaaash!

Tentacles with black blades and vicious eyeballs were now embedded in the fighter’s hull.

[C] Explosive Despair.

‘Stare in despair.’

A suicide bomber covered in fierce eyes. Its power is enough to blow up a destroyer.

‘It looks a little creepy, but…’

It was still useful. Jin-woo looked at the pirate battleship. It was small compared to the frigate, but it was still as big as a skyscraper.

Paaassh!

The suicide bomber began to accelerate, leaving a red streak of light behind it. The fighters around the pirate battleship tried to intercept it, but-

Slash! Slash!

Its tentacles stretched out and tore the combat planes apart. Where the suicide bomber passed, only the remains of enemies were left behind. Even the shield spread around the battleship was lightly cut apart by the blades. The battleship and the suicide bomber that Jin-woo rode had grown so close they were nearly touching in a matter of seconds.

“Umm…”

The moment when the suicide bomber pierced the armor of the pirate battleship-

Baaaaaaaaaaang!

The pirate battleship swelled like a water balloon from the center and then rippled out in a massive explosion, catching the nearby fighters.

‘This is also fine.’

It felt like he was relieving his stress. Jin-woo nodded and moved to the next pirate battleship. He clenched his fist as he rammed into its side.

Crack!

It split in two. What words could describe this scene?

The pirates now knew the fear of cosmic horror.