Chapter 487

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Chapter 487: Balance (4)

SMAACK!

With a deafening crash, the cone-headed figure was sent flying backward.

The rest of the Caramels, who had already drawn their swords, swarmed in—not toward the attacker, Yeongwoo, but toward the fallen cone-head.

―I-Instructor!

―Are you all right, sir?!

Yeongwoo sighed and placed a hand on his hip.

“At the very least, shouldn’t you be restraining the attacker first? Obviously, there's going to be a follow-up.”

Only then did the Caramels belatedly turn toward Yeongwoo, raising their weapons.

―Huh?

―D-Don't tell me...!

“…These guys seriously call themselves the Royal Knights?”

Of course, regardless of any restraint, Yeongwoo had enough power to kill everyone present with a single strike.

But more importantly, their defensive capabilities were directly linked to Prince Aldo’s safety.

If Doatel's charity organization was going to partner with them in the future, then Prince Aldo needed to stay alive as long as possible—for the money laundering to continue as long as possible, that is.

“Just think of my visit today as a kind of vaccination. Because out there in the universe, there are far worse than me…”

Yeongwoo stopped mid-sentence.

He had sensed something behind him.

“At least someone here is doing their job.”

And almost simultaneously, a massive fist flew toward his upper body and head.

WHOOSH!

―Jeong Yeongwoo, Royal Envoy. You are under emergency arrest for assaulting a royal attendant.

It was the same ‘enforcer’ who had come alone to greet Yeongwoo and Jiseon earlier.

As expected, this one was far more combative than the other Caramels.

“A rear assault? Not bad.”

But Yeongwoo didn’t have the luxury to stay relaxed, so he quickly raised his Aratubank.

THUD!

Just as he brought up his guard, the enforcer’s punch slammed into the outer panel of the Aratubank.

∴ Whoa, what the hell is this?

Even Song Jeong-ho, who was in stasis inside the coffin, was so startled by the unexpected force that his presence leaked out.

“What, Uncle? You were in there?”

∴ What do you mean ‘in there’? You’re the one who put me in here in the first place.

“So we came as a trio, huh?”

The moment Yeongwoo spoke, another massive presence stirred behind him.

―Of course there's a follow-up.

The enforcer was throwing Yeongwoo’s earlier line right back at him.

“Well, well.”

Yeongwoo turned around with a pleased expression.

On a planet full of fools and dimwits, there was at least one decent fighter.

Still, it wasn’t enough to put a scratch on Lord Jeong Yeongwoo.

“This is as far as I let things slide. If you really had a follow-up attack, you should’ve struck before talking.”

With those words, Yeongwoo unleashed a cosmic Prestige reaching level 48.

The enforcer, who had been preparing to strike, dropped to the ground under its sheer pressure.

―……!

A power he'd never encountered before overwhelmed him and forced respect from his body.

―T-This is…

Unable to even flinch where he stood, the enforcer was met with a calm voice from Yeongwoo.

“You seemed fairly capable… But can’t even move at all? Then how on earth did Lemu fight the Chairman?”

Since learning about the concept of Prestige, Yeongwoo had often reflected on the true duel between Lemu and the Chairman.

After all, the two differed by an entire tier in existence level, and the gap in Prestige level was significant too.

Yet Lemu had managed to trade blows with the Chairman, and even damaged his blade.

Granted, the price he paid was enormous—he lost an expensive cybernetic body and even had his ship stolen, so in the end, it was a complete defeat.

Rustle.

Yeongwoo’s gaze shifted to the cone-head and the knights around him.

“You. You look like some kind of attendant. What’s your name?”

Yeongwoo pointed to the cone-head, who slowly raised his upper body from the floor.

―K… Kalbik. I am the Third Attendant, Kalbik.

“Ah, Mr. Kalbik. So you’re the highest-ranking officer on this transport?”

At this, Kalbik twisted his cone hat even tighter.

―...Yes.

“Then you should be able to change this ship’s destination.”

―………

Silence often meant yes.

Having confirmed that the Third Attendant Kalbik was indeed the highest authority on the vessel, Yeongwoo took action.

Click, click.

He moved toward Kalbik, who was still seated on the floor.

“Get up.”

―Excuse me?

“You’re coming with me to the cockpit. This ship’s no longer heading to the prison.”

With that, Yeongwoo grabbed Kalbik by the front of his armor and hoisted him up.

THUD!

The knights surrounding Kalbik immediately stepped back and pointed their swords at Yeongwoo.

―Release the attendant at once!

―This is your final warning!

“How many final warnings do you guys give before you actually attack?”

Yeongwoo let out a scoff while tightening his grip on Kalbik.

Then, his pupils flashed gold as he released a sharp burst of Prestige.

FWOOSH!

―Ugh?!

―Guhk…!

The overwhelming Prestige caused the knights to drop their swords without even realizing it.

Seeing this, Yeongwoo tilted his chin toward a door in the distance.

“That way leads to the cockpit, right?”

Kalbik replied in a hesitant voice.

―Y-Yes, it does.

Truly, the virtuous ones never lie.

But just because they were virtuous didn’t mean they would allow themselves to be used.

―However… even if we reach the cockpit, you won’t be able to get what you want.

“…Why not?”

―I can give the order to change our destination, but only the captain can actually carry it out.

“What, there’s a separate captain?”

Well, this was the first time he’d ever boarded someone else’s ship.

And just the corridor they had come through earlier was over 30 meters long, so who knew how big this transport vessel really was.

“So, basically, you're saying the captain isn’t going to follow a criminal’s orders.”

As Yeongwoo muttered this while stroking his chin, Kalbik looked up into the air and declared boldly instead of responding directly.

―The peace of the royal family is the balance of the universe…!

It was probably a slogan implying his willingness to sacrifice himself here and now.

Not exactly polite, but Yeongwoo couldn’t help finding it amusing.

“Don’t be so dramatic. I really am a guest of Prince Aldo.”

With that, he shoved Kalbik forward and said,

“Lead the way. Take me to the bridge. And if you try anything funny, I’ll kill every other caramel besides you.”

At that, Kalbik turned his body to look back at Yeongwoo.

―A-as I thought… You’re revealing your true nature. A guest of the prince would never utter such wicked words. Never.

“In this vast universe, saying ‘never’ is a bit arrogant, don’t you think?”

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Then Yeongwoo gave Kalbik a little nudge on the back with his foot.

“Walk. Let’s just get inside the planet first.”

―…….

As Kalbik began walking toward the bridge under Yeongwoo’s urging, Jiseon whispered quietly,

–Aren’t we racking up some serious karma here? No matter what, we shouldn’t be tormenting good people.

“These guys are so stubborn that this level of force is the only way they’ll understand. And in the end…”

Yeongwoo added that it was just a little wrongdoing for the sake of a greater good.

They had to get into Doatel safely if they were going to launder the donation funds or whatever.

“It’s a necessary evil. Besides, none of the caramels have even been hurt yet, right?”

–Their hearts are probably bruised.

“My heart hurts too, you know.”

As Yeongwoo and Jiseon exchanged words, Kalbik opened a large door and pointed to the space beyond.

―That door in the center leads to the bridge.

“And what about the ones on the left and right?”

Just like Yeongwoo said, in the wide area ahead, there was one door on each side, making three doors in total leading to the next room.

―The left leads to the propulsion room and the knights’ quarters.

“And the right?”

―The right is...

Kalbik hesitated to answer.

When Yeongwoo placed a hand on the bastard sword at his hip, the answer finally came.

―That one… leads to the detention area.

“Ah.”

Just as Administrative Officer Kubu had said—it was a ship originally built and sent out for the purpose of an arrest.

“So if everything had gone according to plan, we would’ve been dragged in that direction.”

But the caramels’ innocent arrest plan had failed, and now Yeongwoo was about to enter the very heart of the ship.

“Go open the bridge door. I’ll figure out a way to sweet-talk the captain.”

At Yeongwoo’s command, Kalbik quickly moved forward and stood in front of the bridge door.

Then, placing his palm on the door panel, he spoke carefully.

―This is Third Attendant Kalbik. A serious situation has occurred, and I’ve brought an outsider aboard.

A surprised voice came from inside the door.

―An outsider? What do you mean?

This ship’s main mission was prisoner transport.

Which meant, on this ship, any "outsider" would only ever be someone being transported.

―…You should probably open the door.

Knowing full well that the criminal could easily smash through a door like this anyway, Kalbik gave it a soft knock.

That was his way of saying: Just open it already.

And finally—

Pshhhhhk!

The thick metal door to the bridge slid open from both sides.

And inside—

―Attendant, what in the world is going on…?

A figure who could only be the captain stood flanked by two knights, having come to greet the attendant.

This caramel was the only one not wearing armor—he wore woven cloth instead.

―Do not forget the balance… nor your duty.

―…Excuse me?

As the bridge door opened, Attendant Kalbik delivered a cryptic message to the captain.

And the moment he finished speaking, a foreboding grey silhouette appeared behind him.

Thud!

It was none other than Jeong Yeongwoo07.

The criminal trying to change this transport vessel’s destination from prison to a royal venue.

“Hey, are you the captain? The one who was gonna drag me off to prison?”

―W-well…

Sweat poured down the caramel captain’s face like rain.

Yeongwoo strode confidently into the bridge and placed a hand on the captain’s shoulder.

“I know how stubborn you people are. Even if it meant dying right here and now, you’d never agree to change the destination from prison to a royal gala.”

At this, Kalbik looked genuinely surprised.

―Huh? What are you suddenly talking about…?

“So just go to prison. Stick with the original plan.”

As he said this, Yeongwoo casually took a seat in the captain’s chair.

Jiseon tilted her head and walked up beside him.

–What the hell kind of insane move is this?

“We can’t just sit here wasting time with these guys. Let’s break through that refugee fleet first.”

–But if you go to prison, what’s the point?

“Who said we’re going to prison?”

–What? But you just said—

“We’re not going to prison.”

Then Yeongwoo traced a long arc in the air with his finger.

“We’re jumping off. Mid-air. Over Doatel.”

–What? Are you serious?

“We’ve got two dragons. Why wouldn’t it be possible?”

[Translator - Night]

[Proofreader - Gun]