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Chapter 398: Gift Breakthrough (2)
Doatel.
A planet of the Virtuous Ones, also known as a cosmic relief sanctuary.
As such, the primary purpose of Doatel was to help the poor or aid those in distress who sought refuge there.
In other words—
‘Wait... aren’t they just a bunch of people giving away money? Then why does the royal family have so much wealth?’
Of course, it was also possible that they were able to engage in relief efforts precisely because they had so much money.
But even so, running planetary-scale relief operations must incur substantial costs… How on earth were they covering those expenses?
‘Where did all this money even co from? They couldn’t have been born into a pile of cash.’
As Yeongwoo stared at the endlessly stretching procession of palanquins carrying gifts, a massive shadow lood over him.
—Yeongwoo-nim.
It was none other than Prince Aldo.
“Ah, Your Highness.”
As soon as Yeongwoo saw him, he gave a polite nod, to which Aldo responded with a similar bow.
—Thank you for the invitation. I’ve never traveled this far before.
"This far," he says...
If even Aldo, who had arrived on that massive spaceship, considered this distance significant, then just how far apart were Earth and Doatel?
“Is that ship yours, Your Highness?”
Yeongwoo asked, pointing at the colossal vessel that resembled a giant ceramic artifact. Aldo shook his hands in denial.
—Mine? No, all of this belongs to the Shelbir royal family and to Doatel. Our presence here is also in accordance with Doatel’s will.
“…Wait, you an Doatel is aware that you’re bringing all this money here?”
—Of course. As soon as I returned to Doatel from the Promotion Hall, I made an official announcent, and I have fully inford them about you as well.
‘…Fully inford?’
Just what had he told them?
Yeongwoo doubted that soone like Aldo would go around speaking ill of him.
If anything, that made him even more uneasy.
“So, in short, this is a lawful visit? And the congratulatory gifts were obtained legally as well?”
—Naturally, Yeongwoo-nim.
“Hm.”
In that case, there was nothing more to worry about.
The financial power of the Shelbir royal family remained a mystery, but Yeongwoo had no reason to turn away incoming gifts.
‘And really, when else would I get to handle such righteous money?’
However, just because the gifts were legal didn’t an all problems were solved.
After all, the competition over wedding gifts was a fierce battle involving the Chairman, Master Mara, and CEO Lemu.
Now, a massive new financial force had just entered the fray out of nowhere.
‘Shit, what’s going to happen now?’
Yeongwoo had no way of predicting how the existing financial titans would react to the sudden intrusion of Prince Aldo—no, the Shelbir royal family—into the ga.
And before he could even sort out his thoughts, Aldo had already taken a step toward the lobby.
Yeongwoo hurriedly grabbed his arm.
“Your Highness!”
—Yes, Yeongwoo-nim?
“Have you ever t a villain before?”
As Yeongwoo asked, Aldo, who had been looking at the execution platform in the lobby, slowly turned his head.
—…….
Aldo had no visible eyes, nose, or mouth, so his expression and gaze were unreadable.
Yet, Yeongwoo was certain.
He was staring right at him.
“N-no, not soone like —a villain wannabe. I an a real villain! A much greater one!”
—Are you saying… there are villains greater than you, Yeongwoo-nim?
“…Ha.”
Yeongwoo felt a headache coming on.
This naive Virtuous One had clearly never encountered true evil from the other side of the universe.
“Right now, at that wedding venue, there’s a chairman of a weapons manufacturing company, the King of Ten Thousand Demons, and the Master of the Machine Tower. The other guests? Loan sharks and arms dealers selling equipnt to backwater planets like this one.”
Yeongwoo openly disparaged his own wedding guests.
Yet Aldo didn’t seem to grasp the weight of it.
Instead, he placed a large hand on Yeongwoo’s shoulder and spoke.
—Yeongwoo-nim.
“Yes?”
—The universe is like a mirror that reflects oneself.
“…What?”
—You ca before as the self-proclaid greatest villain of the Promotion Hall, yet in the end, you beca my benefactor.
“……”
He wasn’t entirely wrong.
Though he had forced countless fellow participants to take on promissory notes, he hadn’t actually taken their lives as originally planned.
Especially for Aldo and the 023 trillion-credit group, he had even granted them the privilege of additional promotions.
So, yes, in a way, he had been a benefactor.
“Well… I suppose that’s true, but…”
—I’ve told you before. Good and evil are not absolute. Just as it was in the Promotion Hall, the karma of this place will also converge toward zero.
Swoosh!
Coincidentally, the very mont Aldo finished speaking, the executioner’s blade fell upon the platform in the distance.
Yet Aldo paid no mind to it.
Instead, he spread his arms wide, as if embracing Earth’s atmosphere.
Fwoosh!
—That, I believe, is why I was invited as your guest. You accumulated virtue in the Promotion Hall. I know this, and so I have co to return that virtue in kind.
In other words, if this planet had amassed imnse evil, Aldo intended to counterbalance it with his own good deeds, thus restoring "harmony."
“…If you put it that way…”
Yeongwoo nodded.
But that was easier said than done.
The villains gathered here were on a completely different level from the amateur scoundrels at the Promotion Hall.
“For now… shall we make our offering?”
At last, Yeongwoo stepped toward the lobby, pointing at the gift table. Aldo nodded in response.
At his signal, Special Knight Domtao ordered the procession of palanquins carrying the wedding gifts to move forward once more.
Step! Step! Step!
The sound of their powerful footsteps echoed.
Hearing this, the wedding guests inside began to step out one by one to observe the spectacle.
Chairman Dogo, who had been loitering in the lobby, crossed his arms with an intrigued expression.
Lemu, too, observed the Shelbir royal family’s treasure-laden procession with a subtle smile.
And lastly—
「I sll fresh blood.」
The current top-ranked gift-giver, the King of Ten Thousand Demons, Mara, appeared at the main entrance, seated upon his Iron Throne.
Even he couldn’t ignore the presence of such an extraordinary new guest.
Clank! Clank!
Before long, the knights of the Shelbir royal family lined up in the middle of the lobby and simultaneously set down their large palanquins.
Boom!
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The heavy crashing sound ca not from anything ordinary—but from piles of money.
—...!
—W-What is this?
As expected, the guests in attendance flinched and stepped back.
Then, Aldo, flanked by Domtao for security, stepped in front of the ceremonial platform.
—Your Highness, it appears this is the ceremonial platform.
Domtao, glancing at the stack of signature boards behind the platform, spoke.
At that mont, Kobu, who had been standing in front, slowly stood up and fidgeted his fingers as he looked at the emblem of the Shelbir royal family.
It was clearly an insignia of a significant power, yet he had never seen this exact design before.
Then, from outside the ceremonial platform, an entirely unexpected statent ca from none other than Chairman Dogo.
—Do you not know? It’s the Shelbir royal family of Doatel.
—Huh.
—Ah!
"What?"
Not only the guests but even Yeongwoo was astonished.
‘Seriously? Is there anything Chairman doesn’t know?’
How could the chairman, who was practically the embodint of evil, know the na of a royal family from Doatel—a planet known for reaching the pinnacle of virtue?
Then, Domtao leaned toward the ceremonial platform and spoke in a low voice.
—This is Prince Aldo.
At those words, Kobu imdiately prostrated himself on the ground and shouted loudly.
—I humbly greet Prince Aldo of the Shelbir royal family…!
Then, as he carefully got up, he cast a quick glance at the high-ranking guests near the lobby.
—Um… Your Highness, here you can check the rankings and rules for the ceremonial donations… After that, you may set the donation amount you wish to offer and sign.
—Oh, so there’s a ranking system for ceremonial donations?
Aldo’s head twisted in a spiral motion.
Sliiide.
If he were human, it would have looked like a puzzled tilt of the head.
Then, placing his hand on the upper panel of the ceremonial platform, just as Kobu had indicated—
Tap.
The platform was instantly enveloped in an otherworldly light, projecting the ceremonial donation system before Aldo’s eyes.
From the tiered seating system based on rankings to the privilege of expelling guests for the top-ranked donor, and even the significance of the third-tier seats—everything was laid out.
—Uh… This seems like a mistake.
Seeing the words "Guest Expulsion" on the display, Aldo turned around.
In response, Yeongwoo shrugged and explained.
“You read it correctly. The highest-ranked donor’s ultimate privilege is the right to expel guests.”
—Wait… But that doesn’t make sense. Why would soone who values this ceremony enough to donate the most money want to expel another guest?
At that mont, a sharp voice shot toward Aldo.
「You fool. You’re going to be expelled anyway, so just shut up and make your donation.」
—Pardon…?
Only then did Aldo notice the towering Iron Throne suspended high above and the figure seated upon it—Mara.
—Excuse , but who might you be?
「Hah, you dare ask for my na?」
Mara, enraged, gripped the armrest of the throne.
From it, a surge of imnse void energy burst forth, engulfing the entire lobby.
Fwoooosh!
“This is insane!”
Feeling the sudden plumt in stability, Yeongwoo urgently pointed toward the main building and shouted.
“Your Highness! That is none other than the number one-ranked donor, King of Ten Thousand Demons—Mara!”
—T-That person is ranked first?
Finally, Aldo followed Yeongwoo’s pointing finger and checked the ranking board on the main hall’s wall.
[Rank 1] Mara, Ominous Eye 「Private Amount」
[Rank 2] Dogo 「3 Billion」
[Rank 3] Lemu, Lightning Rod 「1.6 Billion」
[Rank 4] Hamr of Kwaya, Private Amount
[Rank 5] Cheok, 90 Million
—Ah.
Letting out a short exclamation, Aldo seed to have realized sothing.
He turned back to Yeongwoo and declared.
—Now I finally understand why I’ve co here!
“…What?”
—The balance of this ceremony… is still not right!
Swoosh!
With an unprecedentedly determined motion, Aldo placed his hand firmly on the ceremonial platform.
—As soone who wholeheartedly celebrates this ceremony, I must restore balance!
In other words—he intended to beco the top donor himself and expel the King of Ten Thousand Demons.
Swoooosh!
By now, the void energy that had engulfed the lobby had beco a storm, constricting the guests.
More specifically, it was a tempest ant to tear apart Prince Aldo for daring to offend Mara.
“…Didn’t you just say that soone who truly values the ceremony wouldn’t expel another guest?”
Struggling against the raging void, Yeongwoo managed to voice his question.
Aldo, gripping the ceremonial platform, shook his head.
—This isn’t expelling a guest, Yeongwoo!
“Th-Then what is it?”
—It’s about removing evil karma!
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