Book 2 Chapter 626
According to Residue’s understanding, the communication room wasn’t far from the captain’s room. In fact, not only the communication room but most key facilities were located close to the captain’s room.
In other words, the captain’s room was situated at the very center of the ship Amdal. It was a design made with consideration for the captain, who had to constantly inspect and manage all facilities closely.
Riding the moving walkway, they headed toward the communication room.
In truth, since he already knew the location, he could have arrived instantly, but he chose not to. That was because looking around the inside of Amdal was rather interesting.
Alongside the moving walkway, there was a glass wall, beyond which the view of space could be seen clearly at a glance.
And for the first time, Residue came to understand the exact form of the universe of the integrated world.
There were few things that could be called planets. The word "galaxy" could almost be classified as a dead term, as the space was so empty.
However, the planets that could be seen were extremely large, and their shapes were strange to be called planets.
First, instead of being spherical, they were flat, plate-like in shape, and based on certain boundary lines, the differences in climate and environment between regions seemed too extreme. It looked as though a world had been placed into each square of a grid, and hundreds or thousands of such plates existed, like a chessboard.
Even upon a second look, they were too large to be called planets, and they seemed at least ten times bigger than the largest universe Residue knew.
There were at least hundreds of such planets visible to the naked eye.
All of them seemed to orbit or hover as if revolving, and the standard for their motion was the Hole of Destruction.
“……”
Residue silently stared at the sight for a while.
As he watched the majestic scenery that was hard to take in all at once, a sudden thought crossed his mind, that this was what people meant when they said the world was going crazy.
“Um……”
Bardrog, in a quiet voice, broke Residue’s train of thought.
“How should I address you?”
“Space pirate.”
“……”
“Just kidding. Call me Residue.”
“Is that your name?”
“Why? Is it strange?”
As Residue asked with a faint smile, Bardrog fervently shook his head.
“N-no way! I think it’s a very, very cool name.”
“Really? I think it’s lame.”
“……”
At that, he looked flustered.
He was a man with no talent for flattery. That also meant he was a boring man, or perhaps a man with no connection to success.
Residue's interest fizzled out.
“…This is the communication room.”
"Mm."
When he opened the door and entered, a spacious area appeared.
Roughly a dozen crew members were sitting there, each focused on their tasks with personal electronic devices, but upon seeing Bardrog appear suddenly, they all stopped what they were doing and saluted. ŕ𝒶Ｎ∅ᛒËs
The eldest-looking middle-aged man among them approached, saluted, and asked.
“Captain, what brings you to the communication room?”
“I need to use the emergency communication line. It must be done in complete secrecy, so chief, take your subordinates and vacate this place.”
“Right now, sir?”
“Immediately.”
“But halting operations in the communication room, even if temporarily, could cause a critical threat to the ship…”
“Basic responses I can handle alone. If an urgent matter arises, I will summon you immediately.”
“……”
“Did I not explain clearly enough?”
“No, sir.”
The communication room chief looked somewhat unconvinced, but after glancing at Bardrog’s face, he lowered his head.
His gaze belatedly landed on Residue and Luca behind him.
“And those behind you are…?”
“Guests. They are distinguished visitors, so show them respect.”
“Ah. Yes…”
As the communication chief slightly bowed his head, Residue grinned and waved. Luca politely nodded in return.
The communication room chief quickly gathered his subordinates and vacated the room.
Now only three figures remained in the wide communication room.
Bardrog instantly erased the intimidating expression he had just shown, let out a heavy sigh, and began operating the communication equipment. Luca curiously watched the shimmering, semi-transparent operation panels move around.
After a while, Bardrog nodded.
“I sent the encrypted message to the supreme leader through the emergency line, but it will take some time. From what I’ve heard, if he’s not especially busy, he usually responds within an hour.”
"An hour......"
Residue sat on a nearby chair and spoke.
“It’d be nice if there were something to chew on.”
“…Hmm. We do have preserved rations, but they’re sealed in semi-permanent packs, so I’m not sure if they’ll suit your taste…”
“Ah, preserved rations. That’s the food we absolutely die for.”
“Space rations! I want to try them!”
Luca raised her hand high as she spoke.
With a reluctant expression, Bardrog nodded and went to the break room next to the communication room.
Only then did Residue wipe the smile from his face and quietly stared at the empty hologram screen.
He knew, since he had most of Lukas’ regression memories. That guy had also been entangled with Kiel Marlgol. It happened in a now-vanished timeline.
When he had been swept up by the Exile and forcibly returned to the Three Thousand Worlds at an unwanted moment.
When the Blue Knight Pale and the Everlasting Plum Sword Yang In-hyun had been uncomfortable travel companions.
In a certain city of a certain universe where the Great Fusion was taking place, Lukas came to know about Kiel Marlgol.
Of course, Residue had known about Kiel even before that. He had been someone bold enough to catch the attention of the Rulers, and he was a very peculiar individual.
Kiel had even once joined hands with the Lightning God to carry out a certain endeavor together. Though both sides never referred to it as cooperation and simply considered it mutual use, from a perspective now free from the Rulers’ viewpoint, it was clear how extraordinary that was.
Bzzt- zt-.
So it wasn’t hard to predict.
That Kiel’s reply would never take a whole hour.
A sound full of noise began to crackle. As if responding, the lights flickered like some wires had gone out.
“Ah…?”
Luca, who had been observing the communication room, the hologram, and the outer scenery, was startled.
[Who are you?]
Bzzt.
A voice mixed with mechanical noise was heard. Bardrog, who had just returned with food from the preserved packs, froze in place. Though he had only spoken with the person once or twice, it was a voice impossible to forget for a lifetime.
Residue looked at the hologram in front of him.
It was a being dressed in something resembling priestly robes, oddly mismatched with its appearance that seemed half monster and half machine. It would have looked bizarre whether a monster or machine wore such clothes, but a creature that looked like a fusion of the two was wearing them, making the bizarreness even more intense.
“Greetings. The number of electrodes connected to that body seems to increase day by day. Is it the aftermath of the increased amount of universe information that needs to be grasped?"
Residue said that with a hint of familiarity.
Kiel silently stared at Residue in response. His pale eyes reminded one of a rotting fish’s, making it difficult to read any emotion.
But Residue had already encountered beings with whom one might even doubt the existence of emotions.
Compared to Destruction, trying to guess what this man was thinking wasn’t difficult at all.
“What I want to say first is, there’s no need to think too complicatedly about what’s happening right now.”
How much does Kiel know about who I am now?
Perhaps he might know about the existence called Lukas Trowman. That guy was well-versed in the universe’s systems and was familiar with every Ruler. When asked about the “Great Game” he had even offered some harsh criticisms.
‘Even so.’
There’s no way he knows that the body of Lukas Trowman has been consumed by the remnant of the Lightning God - residue.
'Not that I think that fact gives me any particular advantage.'
In the first place, those prior factors have little significance when negotiating with Kiel.
“My method of contact was a bit aggressive, wasn’t it? If I startled you, allow me to offer my deepest apologies… Are your current affairs going well?”
Bardrog looked dumbfounded.
This man was addressing the supreme leader of the Grand Galactic Alliance as if speaking to an old friend he had parted with long ago.
[Do you even know what I’m working on?]
“Of course.”
[Then say it.]
“Right here?”
Residue glanced behind him.
Luca and Bardrog blinked their eyes in unison.
“I personally don’t mind at all, but if I speak here, you’re going to kill these two, aren’t you?”
[…Bardrog.]
“Y-yes?”
[Leave.]
“Yes, sir…!”
Bardrog hurriedly rushed outside. Residue gestured toward Luca with his chin.
Soon, Residue was left alone in the communication room.
[Before I hear your answer, let me first say one thing. If you’re trying to deceive me or spouting nonsense to get out of this with quick-witted improvisation, you’ve just made the worst choice.]
“Oh? Why is that?”
[I have never forgiven a single person who tried to deceive me. You too will live out your remaining days in hell. You’ll never sleep peacefully for even a single night. The eyes and ears of my forces are everywhere. I will track down everyone connected to you and-]
“Enough.”
Residue barely stifled a yawn.
“I’m done listening to boring cliches. Your threats haven’t evolved in the slightest even after thousands of years.”
Residue cut Kiel off before he could say more.
“Have you seen the Half King?”
[…]
Kiel, just about to speak, fell silent again.
“You’ve certainly seen it. And I’m sure you couldn’t take your eyes off it for a moment. With your level of insight, you must’ve realized it at a glance, right? That it’s an artificial lifeform. In other words… a monster far superior to the so-called masterpiece your clan spent their whole lives trying to create has been born. And it came from people of a world and background you know nothing about.”
[…]
“What did you feel when you saw the Half King? It certainly wasn’t vicarious satisfaction. You witnessed someone else achieve the lifelong ambition your people had pledged their existence to fulfill. So your mania must’ve multiplied. After all, the Half King was far more powerful than the so-called ‘Fifth Ruler’ your kind was trying to bring forth.”
Residue stopped speaking and looked into Kiyel's eyes as he asked.
"Well, that's enough for now. As for the purpose of this visit, I came here to talk business.”
That was a lie.
Before arriving here, he hadn’t planned to get deeply involved with Kiel. He simply wanted to benefit a little from the guy’s vast information network. Kiel was someone who hated pointless fights more than death, so Residue figured he’d toss in a few threats and keep it at that.
But the moment he faced Kiel directly, he changed his mind.
[…]
No answer came back.
Residue assumed Kiel was in shock. Since the usually talkative guy was staying silent for so long, it wasn't an ordinary matter.
Then he glanced behind him and raised a few fingers.
Boom!
With the sound of something exploding, something like a mass of flames flew toward him. Looking closely, it had an unclear form like energy, but the firepower it contained was much greater than most missile weapons.
However, it couldn't penetrate the lightning current surrounding Residue's finger.
“Uh…”
Bardrog could be seen standing there dumbfounded.
The very man Kiel had ordered to leave had burst back in through the door and fired the energy weapon at Residue.
“Wh-what…? What have I done…?”
Bardrog looked completely unaware of what he had just done.
Residue shook his head.
“Cut the cheap act.”
Maybe he had spoken too playfully.
So, Residue first wiped the smile from his own face.
“……”
Bardrog’s expression gradually changed, and soon his eyes turned pure white.
And Bardrog became Kiel. Or at least a vessel carrying his consciousness.
─In other words, Kiel Marlgol was…
A man who ruled his legion in a manner similar to the Death Worm, one of the Twelve Void Lords.
Any being affiliated with the Grand Galactic Alliance, whether it was a low-ranking soldier who might die at the flick of a finger or a commander commanding hundreds of thousands of troops, he could seize control of their consciousness at any time, in any number, as he pleased.
“I’ll say it again. I came here to talk business.”
Residue recalled the past.
─Can the strong be manufactured?
In the days when he spared no effort in tasting failure, when he yearned desperately for someone to fight with all his might.
And the answer he arrived at after much contemplation.
If there’s no one to fight, then why not make one with my own hands?
After that, Residue developed a deep interest in the manufacturing of the strong and observed countless universes with great care. It was then that he encountered species of forgotten universes, like the “Perfect One” or the “Exile”.
Eventually, he came to learn about Kiel’s clan as well.
Those who devoted their entire lives to creating the “Fifth Ruler”.
The reasons were different, but the objective was the same.
─Thus, in that past…
The Supreme Commander of the Grand Galactic Alliance and the Thunderous Lightning God once joined hands to create a single Absolute.
*****
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