Chapter 471

[Translator - Night]

[Proofreader - Gun]

Chapter 471: The Meeting of Families (5)

Background character.

Putting aside prestige or stature, it’s a fact that celestial bodies are inherently part of the “background.”

The vast majority of celestial bodies are assigned orbits they can never escape.

In other words, even if they’re under fire, they can’t perform evasive maneuvers.

Furthermore, by their very existence, they are components of the "system" to which they belong.

Take Earth, for example—one of the members of the solar system.

When Earth declared its intention to break orbit, didn’t the sun and all the planets rush to stop it?

In that sense, even the notoriously infamous Centauri brothers were nothing more than part of the background that composes the universe.

If one were to add a little color, they were just background elements assigned the role of “powerful stars.”

● What did you say? Background?!

As expected, Toliman erupted in fury and sprang to his feet.

Though Toliman was inferior to Moro in terms of presence, the term "background" that she just uttered included not only him but also his older brother, Kentaurus.

That’s why, representing the Centauri brothers, Toliman was enraged.

● How dare you…!

Consumed by anger, Toliman soared into the air, completely forgetting that Chairman Dogo was also present.

FWOOOSH!

Seeing this, Moro sneered from her throne made of her own hair.

『How dare I? Isn’t that exactly what I should be saying—one who is about to transcend the limits of a star?』

Then she raised her right hand high into the sky.

WHAP!

A sharp, golden light gathered in her palm and began forming spiked projectiles.

『Behold! My choice, unbound by the constraints of a celestial body!』

She then launched a yellow spike—at none other than her own brother-in-law, her husband’s older brother.

SHREEEEEE!

She had clearly decided to throw away more than just her orbit.

‘Wait—she’s actually trying to kill him?’

Even for Yeongwoo, this was the first time seeing his mother-in-law wield real power.

CRACK!!

The spike she launched ripped through the air violently. Toliman, from within his pale celestial robes, gathered hundreds of hands and formed a mysterious sigil.

FWIIISSH!

It seemed to be some kind of defensive magic.

A dark shield soon formed in front of him.

But—

○ It’s going to break.

Earth, from inside Yeongwoo’s head, predicted the outcome—and moments later, it happened.

SHHHHRACKK!

Moro’s spike briefly paused in front of the shield—then shattered right through it.

● Guh?!

Startled, Toliman twisted his body, but not before the spike pierced his shoulder.

CRACK!

‘Huh? Wait a second…’

Yeongwoo couldn’t help but ask Earth:

‘Aren’t the second Centauri brother and mother-in-law in the same class? But she’s absolutely crushing him.’

Earth replied, in an oddly excited tone:

○ It’s home ground.

‘What?’

○ Stars are strongest in their own domain. So there’s no way Moro would lose to another star while in the Solar System.

‘Really? Then if we were in the Centauri system…?’

○ Then the situation would be completely reversed.

‘Holy crap.’

Meanwhile, Moro’s countless hair strands split into thousands and began to pound her brother-in-law mercilessly.

‘Wait—so what exactly is the solar system? Does it include up to the designated orbits?’

○ The solar system is a kind of structure. If the eight planets and five dwarf planets, including me, are within the Sun’s influence, then that’s the solar system.

‘So if we launch the planetary ship and become the new center of the system—does the Sun still get home ground status?’

It was a roundabout way of asking: can the Sun and Earth maintain their power after leaving their orbit?

Earth hesitated for a moment.

○ I mean… neither I nor Moro has ever become a planetary ship before… We’ll only know when the time comes.

And around this time—finally—the battle was decided.

KWA-RRAAANG!!

Moro unleashed her silver-white hair like a waterfall and smashed Toliman into the ground.

『What exactly did you come all the way here to do?』

Only after slamming him into the ground did she begin to assess the situation.

That’s when Yeongwoo quietly stepped forward.

“Too much has happened to explain everything, but for now, I have to slap Second Uncle in the face.”

『What?!』

“His cheek. We already talked about this. Right, Uncle?”

The "uncle" Yeongwoo referred to here wasn’t Toliman, but the eldest—Kentaurus.

He knew that even someone as fiery as Toliman obeyed his older brother.

● ……

Then Kentaurus, in a tired voice, tried to calm his brother down.

● This is the most complicated day of my life. We should take care of things quickly and head back.

Basically: offer up your cheek and let’s get out of here.

Even if his nephew weren’t totally insane, Chairman Dogo was still present.

● This… this is ridiculous. Are we really being humiliated like this?

Toliman responded with rage in his voice, clearly unhappy even with his brother’s advice.

But the worst was still to come.

They had already been humiliated in front of their nephew—but if they delayed any longer, even the youngest brother, Proxima, would arrive.

● Hurry it up! Even I am starting to boil inside.

Kentaurus pressed him again.

● Dammit.

Eventually, Toliman withdrew the killing intent radiating from his body. Sensing this, Moro stepped away from him and looked toward Yeongwoo.

『You’re seriously going to slap him?』

“I told you—it’s for real.”

『I’ve never seen that before.』

“Exactly why it needs to happen.”

A slap that even a high-level star like Moro had never witnessed—an unprecedented level of insult.

Which meant… it was bound to increase Yeongwoo’s prestige level.

‘If just anyone could do it, it wouldn’t be on the mission list.’

As Yeongwoo twisted his palm and approached Toliman’s head, Moro spoke once again.

『I really don’t know about this.』

“…About what?”

『Is this really okay?』

It was a dilemma only a star could have.

The idea of a mere human slapping a star across the face—it felt like the ultimate sacrilege.

“Didn’t you just beat up your brother-in-law?”

『Well, yes. But I’m a star, and you’re…』

She was about to say “a mere speck of dust,” when Yeongwoo’s palm sliced through the air.

SWOOSH!

In the blink of an eye, his hand struck Toliman’s cheek.

SMAAACK!

The crisp sound rang out.

The cloth covering Toliman’s face fluttered, and Kentaurus let out a groan.

● Ugh.

[Translator - Night]

[Proofreader - Gun]

The Centauri brothers, infamous across the universe…

Even the mightiest among them—first and second—had come all the way to this fringe planet, only to get slapped.

But Yeongwoo, the perpetrator, didn’t care in the least.

The only thing he was interested in…

was prestige growth.

“Did… did that do it?”

As Yeongwoo looked down at the hand that had slapped Star’s cheek twice, a dazzling light suddenly flashed before his eyes.

Fwoosh!

“Whoa!”

The light felt familiar.

It was the same kind that appeared whenever an achievement was completed.

Then, along with a clear alert sound, a new achievement really was registered.

Ping!

[Achievement Unlocked: Star Desecrator]

| Achievement Tier: Cosmic

| Rank Achieved: #92

「Caused offense to two or more stars.」

‘Star Desecrator? That was an actual achievement?’

An unexpected reward.

Naturally, being a cosmic-tier achievement made it even more remarkable, and there weren’t many who had earned it.

| Rank Achieved: #92

Considering that his previous cosmic-tier achievements were ranked in the triple digits, the fact that this one was #92 meant very few had ever accomplished it.

In the history of the universe, only 92 people had ever made two or more stars feel offended.

‘Wait, actually... that means there are 91 other lunatics out there besides me who’ve done this? That’s... actually kind of a lot, isn’t it?’

Of course, how many of them were still alive was another question.

Shhhhhhh...!

Then, as his vision turned golden, just like Maon had said, his Prestige progress increased.

Sfx: Swish!

「‘Star Desecrator’ achievement grants +0.8」

‘...Whoa.’

Just unlocking the achievement gave him a 0.8 level boost.

That meant he’d filled up 80% of a full level in one go.

‘Wait a second—if that’s the case...’

Yeongwoo’s eyes widened instantly.

He clearly remembered that right before earning the Star Desecrator achievement, his Prestige status had been at level 38 with 50% progress.

And sure enough—

Shwoooosh!

The golden light in his vision swirled and then formed the number ‘39.’

「Your Prestige Level has increased to 39!」

‘So slapping a star really was a big deal...’

As Yeongwoo stared at his palm with a slightly bitter expression, Maon—who had been watching from behind—smiled faintly.

—You’ve changed. I suppose that means I’ve fulfilled half of our agreement already.

Maon had instantly recognized the rise in Yeongwoo’s Prestige.

But Yeongwoo shook his head.

“Half? What are you talking about? You’re only partially right.”

—What?

“The level I gained from the Star Desecrator achievement was 0.8, not a full level. In business, calculations should be precise.”

He added:

“So you haven’t fulfilled half of the agreement—you’ve only done about 40%.”

—But our agreement was...

“Yes. A two-level increase in Prestige. Not a 1.5-level increase.”

—......

Strictly speaking, it was a matter of interpretation.

Whether “a two-level increase in Prestige” meant simply jumping up two levels or meant filling up 100% progress twice—those were two different things.

“Are you going to object? What if, when we made the deal, I’d already had 90% progress saved up?”

In that case, even a minor achievement would’ve bumped him up a full level.

Meaning Maon would’ve gotten away with providing only about 1.1 levels’ worth of benefit while claiming to fulfill the entire contract.

—Hmm... You’re not wrong.

Eventually, Maon sighed and nodded.

He had no choice but to accept Yeongwoo’s interpretation of the contract—one that clearly worked in Yeongwoo’s favor.

“The agreement was a two-level Prestige increase. So you need to get me to level 40 with 50% progress remaining.”

—Fine. Since we’re in this together, let’s give it our best shot.

Thanks to the Star Desecrator achievement, Yeongwoo’s current Prestige status was:

[Prestige Level: 39]

| 30/100

*Prestige progress required per 1 point: 400 million karma

Which meant Maon would need to provide another 120 progress points to be free of the contract.

“If you think you can’t make the deadline, just pay me in cash.”

—Insulting me won’t give you more Prestige, you know.

Maon easily brushed off Yeongwoo’s jab.

Then, as if suddenly remembering something, he asked Yeongwoo:

—By the way.

“……?”

It was the first time Maon had ever said something like “By the way,” so Yeongwoo perked up.

“By the way what?”

—What did the Star Desecrator achievement give you?

“Huh? Oh!”

Now that he mentioned it, there should have been a reward for the achievement.

Even Maon couldn’t resist his curiosity to know what that reward was.

“Wait, don’t you know what it gives? Didn’t you say the previous Family Head earned it too?”

Maon looked at Yeongwoo with a strange expression.

—Of course I’m curious.

“……?”

—The Star Desecrator gives a different reward based on the achiever’s personality. So how could I not be curious?

“Huh? A personality-based reward?”

—I simply must know what someone who slapped their own uncle in the face ends up receiving...

[Translator - Night]

[Proofreader - Gun]