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Chapter 409: Collection (1)
— Wh-what… inappropriate charges?
— The enforcers are already here?
As the safety evacuation announcent played over the ceremony system, the guests began to murmur.
That was to be expected.
Most of them were, if one were to be blunt, more villainous than virtuous, and thus had plenty of reasons to be uneasy.
Fwoosh!
Suddenly, a circular hole opened up in the right-side wall of the ceremony hall, and a hamr insignia appeared in its place.
「Upon exiting the ceremony hall, guests who contribute to breaking through the wedding gifts will receive an equal share of the reward money. Thank you.」
This was referring to the 5 billion Karma that Jiseon had promised.
— Oh… they're giving out money when we leave.
— Alright, let's go, everyone.
— Take care, don’t get caught.
The guests exchanged parting words with each other.
Jiseon then stood near the evacuation route, bowing deeply at the waist.
Swoosh.
— Thank you so much for coming. I hope we et again for good reasons.
— Yes, take care.
— Congratulations on your wedding.
— Thanks to you, I got to see so rare sights.
The guests expressed their farewells in various ways in response to Jiseon’s gratitude.
So bowed in return, while others displayed the insignias of their respective families.
‘They all seem so nice like this. Hm.’
As Yeongwoo watched the guests gradually disappear into the distance, Daouk, an executive of theOsaek Credit Union, cautiously approached him.
— Yeongwoo-nim.
“Oh, Executive Daouk. Are you leaving now?”
— Yes, I should hurry as well.
Daouk then glanced up at the sky.
He was likely looking at the governnt enforcers positioned outside the planet’s orbit.
“You wouldn’t want to get caught either, would you?”
— That wouldn’t be ideal.
With that, Daouk pulled out a small piece of tal from his pocket.
Swish.
“…What’s this?”
— Hold onto this. It will serve as your share of today's earnings from the ceremony.
Daouk firmly placed the piece of tal in Yeongwoo’s hand.
After paying his respects to Chairman Dogo, he gave Yeongwoo a slight nod.
— I hope we et again.
“I’d rather not deal with loan sharks, but it was a pleasure. I hope we cross paths again in business.”
It had been a good partnership, after all.
As Yeongwoo nodded while gripping the tal piece, Daouk headed toward the evacuation route.
Now, the ones who remained were—
‘What’s with these guys?’
Prince Aldo, three rit traders, a planetary inspector, Rohm’s prisoners, and the high-ranking figures associated with Chairman Dogo were all still gathered near the altar.
“You should be leaving soon, shouldn’t you, Prince?”
Yeongwoo turned to Aldo and asked, prompting Amana, standing beside him, to lift her chin proudly.
— We do not take back routes.
“…It’s just a way to avoid inspections. How is that a back route?”
Yeongwoo tilted his head in confusion, but before he could argue further, Jeonggu, who had been keeping his presence hidden, muttered quietly.
“That’s exactly what a back route is.”
“…Really?”
Just then, a large door appeared on the left side of the ceremony hall.
Fwoosh!
That must be…
“So, that’s the front route?”
The mont Yeongwoo pointed at the new exit, Amana turned to face it.
— It is ti for us to leave.
Then, Prince Aldo extended his hand toward Yeongwoo first.
For the first ti, he initiated a handshake, the Earth-style greeting he had learned from Yeongwoo.
— Yeongwoo, may you always be in good health. The sa to you both as well.
Aldo glanced at Yeongwoo, Jeonggu, and Jiseon in turn.
Yeongwoo grasped Aldo’s hand and nodded.
“I’ll put the wedding gift to good use.”
— Yes. I hope you accumulate many rits.
Of course, the "gift" Aldo had given would be used for military expansion, such as building warships.
“Travel safely…!”
Yeongwoo waved as he bid farewell to the rit traders.
Then, the planetary inspectors, who had no reason to avoid the governnt enforcers, also began to move.
Accompanying them were Rohm’s prisoners, who were now restrained.
■ You actually carried out the ceremony to the end. Impressive.
The chief inspector, Gern, comnted as he observed the scene.
Yeongwoo glanced up at the sky and muttered under his breath.
“…Would you consider accepting another bribe?”
It was a request to let the prisoners go in exchange for so money.
After all, he couldn’t just let Rohm’s prisoners, who had attended the ceremony despite their wanted status, be taken away so easily.
■ Your arrogance knows no bounds. This is the jurisdiction of the family court.
Gern let out a dry chuckle.
But Yeongwoo wasn’t ready to give up.
“The bounty on the wedding gifts was 2 billion earlier, right? I’ll offer you 3 billion instead.”
This was a calculated move, recalling how the inspectors had focused on chasing the prisoners instead of taking the wedding gifts during the earlier chaos.
However, the response was cold.
■ Money can solve many things. But sotis, money alone is not enough, human.
Gern then pointed a finger towards the sky.
■ The court is watching all of this. We have no choice.
That was a roundabout way of saying that, while they would like to take the bribe, they couldn’t go against the court’s direct oversight.
“Damn it.”
Hearing that, Yeongwoo clenched his fists.
anwhile, the prisoners of Rohm grinned wickedly.
— You have to get locked up before you can break out.
— We’ll et again soday.
―Grow stronger, Yeongwoo! Great cris require great power.
■ You speak so nonchalantly. There will be no second chance for your escape.
Gern lightly kicked one of the prisoners on the thigh.
Then, he pulled on the chain connected to the restraints and spoke.
■ In the end, all criminals face imprisonnt. So be careful not to cross the line.
And he was saying this in the very presence of Chairman Dogo.
This alone showed just how powerful the planetary court and the families backing the inspectors were.
■ Let’s go!
With that, Gern led the two inspectors and three prisoners toward the “path ahead,” while Yeongwoo turned to the chairman and asked,
“Chairman, is this the kind of problem that can’t be overco with power?”
Dogo, still seated on his throne, watched the prisoners’ retreating figures.
―They are your guests. If you interfere with their arrest, the responsibility will fall upon you.
In other words, while the chairman could rescue the prisoners, the consequences would be Yeongwoo’s to bear.
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―To stand against the court is to fight against order. I do not wish to advise you to do so at this ti.
It was the first ti the chairman had ever said, “I do not wish to advise you,” instead of “Do what must be done.”
‘…So this is my ceiling.’
The cosmic ceiling of Jeong Yeongwoo 07.
No matter how promising an aspiring villain he was, seizing fugitives from the court’s grasp was sheer folly.
‘Even so, am I really supposed to just stand by and watch as my guests are taken away?’
A villain without power was a miserable existence.
Yeongwoo let out a deep sigh as he saw the inspectors already exiting the wedding hall with the prisoners.
Yet, those who remained in the hall seed unconcerned.
―They are ones who breathe in imprisonnt and escape as naturally as air. They have simply returned to where they were ant to be.
Toma spoke in a detached manner before bidding farewell to the chairman.
Similarly, Lemu added,
□ They are used to prison; they will not die so easily.
“Then… will they be able to escape again soday?”
Lemu stroked his chin.
□ That is difficult to guarantee. Once escapees are recaptured, special asures are put in place.
Then, he left behind a cryptic remark.
□ Wouldn’t it be faster to break them out instead?
“What…?”
Yeongwoo’s eyes widened in shock, but by then, Lemu was already bowing to the chairman.
□ Today is a joyous day, so I trust the chairman will grant rcy.
In other words, he was asking not to be beaten before heading ho.
Dogo pointed his sword at Lemu.
―Disappear before I change my mind, machine.
□ As you command.
Having secured his expensive body for another day, Lemu confidently stepped onto the “path ahead.”
Clank, clank.
At the last mont, he glanced back toward the inside of the hall before vanishing into a beam of light.
He had laid down circuit tiles in advance, right in front of the wedding hall’s exit.
‘There truly is no one more thorough than him.’
Now, only Chairman Dogo, Toma, and the hamr of Kwaya cleaning up the gift tables remained in the hall.
At last, Chairman Dogo stood from his seat and began to rise into the air.
Saaat.
Finally, he was leaving this insane wedding hall.
“Chairman…!”
―I have delayed for too long.
“What should I do now?”
A significant portion of the wedding gifts had co from the chairman’s own pocket.
When Yeongwoo sought his advice, the response was unexpectedly indifferent.
―Open your own path. Your abilities have been proven.
Indeed, gathering the greatest figures of the universe and successfully completing the ceremony must have been proof enough of his competence.
Hwaaat!
Dogo then raised his sword high and stabbed at the air.
In nearly the sa instant, his figure vanished from the hall.
“…Huh?”
The chairman didn’t even need to step outside to fully exercise his powers.
―I am the last one left.
Confirming the chairman’s departure, Toma slowly began moving toward the exit.
Thud!
Yeongwoo, who had been bowing his head behind Toma, suddenly recalled sothing and called out urgently.
“Boss!”
―……?
“The Player’s Trophy! I’ve completed it!”
Toma halted and turned back.
―I know.
“Then, do you also know how to fuse the trophy with this planet?”
This was a detail included in the trophy’s tooltip.
[This Player’s Trophy is a special device capable of ‘ship transformation.’ It can be attached to certain objects or existing ships and, in rare cases, can even fuse with a planet.]
Although the phrase “in rare cases” was included, it clearly stated that planetary fusion was possible.
―A planet? Are you saying you want to turn Earth into a ship?
“Yes.”
―That is quite an ambitious dream.
Toma chuckled softly.
But Yeongwoo didn’t think turning Earth into a ship was just a dream.
According to the prophecy, he was fated to marry the Princess of the Sun, and there seed to be a deep connection between the Sun Princess and Earth’s transformation into a ship.
“If turning Earth into a ship is such a grand ambition, does that an the ship’s power would be just as incredible?”
Hearing this, Toma hesitated before answering.
―It is a difficult question. A planetary ship is massive, and its power is indeed imnse. However…
Toma wiggled his fingers.
Then, he made an unexpected remark.
―But does this planet agree?
“…What?”
Yeongwoo blinked in confusion.
Was that ant to be a poetic expression?
Was he referring to the collective will of all Earth’s inhabitants?
“By ‘the planet’s will,’ do you an… the will of Earth’s people?”
As Yeongwoo tried to clarify, Toma sealed the matter with a final statent.
―Lower-ranked planets like this one are usually quite timid. They would never willingly leave their original orbit.
“What…?”
Yeongwoo’s eyes grew even wider.
“Wait, are you saying this planet has a will of its own? Are you seriously telling I need to get Earth’s permission first?”
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