Chapter 375

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Chapter 375: The Host (1)

‘These punks... Did they think they could have some fun just because I played nice at the Promotion Hall?’

Yeongwoo gazed up at the sky.

The system was something akin to a mechanical deity, so it wasn't surprising that it pursued balance.

After all, imbalance leads to collapse.

Wasn't the reason for Earth's reset also attributed to the arrival of an "imbalanced" state?

「On Tuesday, June 10, 2025, at approximately 10:12:08 a.m., an 'imbalanced' state has arisen.」

「This signifies that the majority of humanity harbored hostility toward the world, triggering the forced activation of the reset function.」

But the Planetary Court wasn’t a god—it was part of a government and, in a sense, a sort of persona.

Courts, after all, are ultimately a collective of bureaucrats.

Yet even the Planetary Court was attempting to push forward the rehabilitation program of the promotion’s Greatest Villain...

‘What exactly is balance in the universe anyway? Is it really some grand principle?’

It seemed that the universe’s government also considered maintaining "balance" an extremely important task.

‘Well, whatever. If they adjust my karmic debt, it’s good for me.’

[Planetary Court] “Balanced Fate”

<Mission> Reunite with the following three individuals: (0/3)

-Aldo, the second prince of Doatel

-Amana, the guardian of Sacred Sutral

-Taru, the last hope of Pigot

<Special> Must use a family-owned spaceship.

<Reward> Adjustment of karma score guaranteed by the Planetary Court.

Adjustment of karmic debt—this likely meant a reduction.

If Yeongwoo could meet those three, who were both his former promotion comrades and great benefactors, his karmic debt could be reduced.

And if that were the case...

‘From one perspective... it feels like they’re trying to help me complete the ‘Burning Ice’ achievement. To pull this off, I’d need to keep increasing my good karma while reducing my bad karma.’

[Burning Ice]

| Ensure that your total points of evil karma do not exceed twice your points of good karma.

For Yeongwoo, who essentially made a living through violent business ventures, this was an achievement that seemed nearly impossible to accomplish.

However, if the Planetary Court’s rehabilitation program could significantly lower his bad karma, completing the "Burning Ice" achievement might actually become a serious possibility.

‘And they told me to reunite with my old comrades. It doesn’t say I have to do good deeds when I meet them, does it? So, even if I go and demand money, it’d still count as completion, wouldn’t it?’

Moreover, he was already set to reunite with Aldo, the Second Prince of Doatel, today.

Being royalty, Aldo already had a spaceship and was expected to attend today’s ceremony as a guest.

‘Then I’ve basically cleared one of them already.’

That left two quests:

-Amana, the guardian of Sacred Sutral

-Taru, the Last Hope of Pigot

Yeongwoo had no idea where Sacred Sutral or Pigot were located, but based on the quest details, it seemed like he could visit them as long as he had a spaceship.

You must use a spaceship owned by your family for this mission.

If today’s wedding ceremony went smoothly, he could progress the court’s quest and enhance his family standing in some way.

‘Let’s just not die at today’s ceremony.’

Though the records had foretold his marriage to the Princess of the Sun, that was only the top-priority predicted future.

Straying too far from the predetermined future could trigger unexpected events, leading to his death.

‘Let’s head back. We can rest until 10 o’clock.’

Current Time: 7:29 a.m.

The extreme weather was about to subside, and the morning call was due to ring soon.

However, the hotel service would last until 10 a.m., allowing him some much-needed rest until then.

Squeak!

As Yeongwoo grabbed the reins, the four-eared creature instinctively turned its head south.

When Yeongwoo stroked its steel mane, it launched into high-speed sprinting.

* * *

7:33 a.m.

When Yeongwoo arrived at the guest room, he was greeted at the door by Jiseon and Jeonggu.

"Y-you’ve been through a lot."

—What happened out there?

The two had only been able to see the public announcement broadcast earlier and were unaware of the exact details of what had transpired.

「Jeong Yeongwoo07, who challenged Earth’s Second promotion Test, has finished with an overall rank of first place!」

Everyone had assumed Yeongwoo had gone into a nighttime dungeon, but the announcement suddenly revealed that he had passed the Second promotion Test.

"What do you mean? I got backstabbed."

As Yeongwoo spoke with a weary expression, undoing his equipment piece by piece, Jiseon clung to him, pressing for answers.

—What do you mean, backstabbed?

"Well, the chairman hinted at it, so I kind of expected it... But today, the portal connected not to a dungeon, but to the Promotion Hall."

—And?

"What else? I worked hard."

Yeongwoo dismissed the feat of earning a staggering 2.46 billion credits from a paid handshake event as merely "working hard."

Even his parents could only imagine the immense effort hidden in the phrase "worked hard."

—Can you really rank first just by working hard? Weren’t there other aliens there too?

"Of course there were."

Yeongwoo casually stripped off his Vesedel armor and flopped onto the bed, leaving his companion weapon within arm’s reach.

—This brat must’ve done something crazy again, didn’t he?

"Oh, come on. I just need some rest, so don’t bother me."

As Yeongwoo furrowed his brow slightly, Jiseon flinched and backed away.

—I’m telling you, he definitely did something terrible, even to aliens.

Unable to confront her son directly, Jiseon muttered to her husband, who nodded silently in agreement.

The two couldn’t imagine that their son had actually performed acts of virtue on an alien planet.

"Anyway, isn’t the important thing that we succeeded in the additional promotion? The planet where your family will settle—wouldn’t it be better if it’s a thriving one?"

With his eyes closed, Yeongwoo made this remark, causing Jiseon and Jeonggu’s expressions to freeze.

"......"

—......

They were suddenly reminded that today was not just any day—it was the day of their wedding ceremony.

"Don't even dream of trying to run away. Your wedding is no longer just a family affair."

—What on earth do you mean by that?

"Don’t you know who’s coming to the wedding today? From the Destroyer King of the Universe to the King of Ten Thousand Demons, the guest list is insane. Now imagine standing them up."

—……

"That’d be the end of our Earth. Honestly, just a duel between the chairman and Mara could split this planet in half."

There wasn’t a single false word in what Yeongwoo said.

With such a colossal guest list invited, the wedding absolutely had to proceed.

"Let’s start the rehearsal around 11."

As Yeongwoo casually threw out the next schedule while lying in bed, Jiseon and Jeonggu's eyes widened in shock.

"Rehearsal?"

—Rehearsal? Are we seriously doing a rehearsal?

"Yes. This is a performance worth at least tens of billions. Of course, there’s going to be a rehearsal."

The hammer from Kwaya, the prison design company, was scheduled to bring the completed wedding venue at precisely 2:23 p.m.

One hour before the ceremony.

At that point, they’d inspect the actual venue in person, settle the remaining balance if there were no issues, and then proceed with the wedding.

"Our venue arrives around 2. But we can’t rehearse just an hour before the ceremony… so we should do it in the morning."

—Rehearsal? Does that mean there’s a program?

"I don’t know. We’ll have to ask Kubu about it later. But I imagine there’s at least a basic outline."

Then, Yeongwoo opened his eyes again.

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"If there’s no universal wedding protocol, we’ll just have to make one. With the amount of money these guests are paying to attend, shouldn’t the two of you at least waltz?"

At this, Jiseon instinctively rested her hand on the hilt of her sword.

—What the hell are you talking about? You can’t be serious.

"Does it sound like I’m joking?"

In response to his mother’s threatening gesture, Yeongwoo’s hand instinctively searched for the position of his sword.

Seeing this, Jeonggu quickly stepped between them, forcing an awkward smile.

"Aha… come on, it’s a special day. Let’s not do this."

—A special day?

"There’s a saying… if you can’t avoid it, you might as well enjoy it…."

Jeonggu laughed bitterly—more at himself than anyone else.

After all, his words were more for his own sake.

A blue-blooded ice dragon of a wife who boiled with rage at his every word, and a patricidal son deemed the strongest in history.

Jeonggu had no desire to welcome such individuals into his family.

‘Damn it… I used to have dreams of a peaceful family too.’

But what could he do when this was the reality he faced?

Truly, Jeonggu stood before a storm.

All he could do now was force a smile and hope no one died.

And since he’d already resigned himself to living on Earth, he figured he might as well support his son’s vision for the planet’s prosperity.

"I’ll… I’ll do my best…."

As Jeonggu bowed repeatedly to his son and future wife, Jiseon clicked her tongue and stepped back.

Then, bypassing Jeonggu, she turned to her son and asked:

—So what now? Are we just supposed to wait until 11?

"I haven’t had a wink of sleep. So I’ll catch some shut-eye until 11. You two keep watch. The room rental ends at 10, right?"

Yeongwoo, still lying in bed, gestured toward the bedroom door.

At this, Jiseon’s armor began to glow an ominous blue.

Jeonggu quickly raised his hands and walked to stand guard by the door.

"Fine. If anything happens, I’ll wake you up. Happy now?"

"Yes. Thank you. After all, I’ve earned some rest after upgrading this planet, haven’t I?"

With that, Yeongwoo closed his eyes again.

Jiseon opened her mouth to say something but stopped.

—Why is that little brat always so full of himself?

She glanced alternately between Yeongwoo and Jeonggu, who stood at the door.

Finally, she slumped to the floor as if giving up and asked Jeonggu:

—What time is it?

"Seven… forty."

—So, 3 hours and 20 minutes until the rehearsal. Damn it.

Jiseon exhaled heavily inside her helmet.

Swallowing hard, Jeonggu checked his watch. It was now 7:41.

Only one minute had passed.

So he, too, cursed silently to himself.

‘…Damn it.’

* * *

This is a dream.

Yeongwoo knew for sure.

How?

BOOOOOOM…!

He was aboard the chairman’s tombstone-shaped spaceship.

Seated on a massive iron throne, clad in Vessedel armor, Yeongwoo gazed forward where Kubu gripped the controls with nonexistent hands.

Having never seen the interior of the chairman’s ship, this vivid depiction could only mean one thing.

‘What an absurd dream.’

In this absurd dream, Yeongwoo traversed the cosmos.

He didn’t know the destination.

Dream-Yeongwoo simply stared at the scenery beyond the control room screen, encased in the tombstone-shaped vessel.

Then—

-Gah, M-Master!

Kubu turned, his enormous eyes wide, calling out to Yeongwoo.

And he addressed him as "Master."

"What is it, Kubu?"

Dream-Yeongwoo shifted his gaze to Kubu, who seemed ready to say something.

CRAAAASH!

A massive stone structure smashed through the exterior of the control room, barreling in without restraint.

"AAAAAAH!"

Dream-Yeongwoo let out a rather undignified scream from his throne.

And then—

FLASH!

“Ugh!”

Yeongwoo’s vision went white as he woke with a start.

“Fuck!”

Shocked, he sat up, running his hands across the bed.

Jeonggu, who had been trying to wake him, almost screamed.

"Y-Yeongwoo! You’re up? You need to get up now! It’s urgent!"

At the mention of something urgent, Yeongwoo snapped his head toward his father.

"What the hell? What could possibly be so urgent the moment I wake up?"

Soaked in cold sweat, he stared at his trembling father, who uttered an incomprehensible phrase.

"A… wreath… from space."

"Wreath?"

"Yeah, a wreath. From space."

[Translator - Night]

[Proofreader - Gun]

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