Chapter 643

[Translator - Night]

[Proofreader - Gun]

Chapter 643: Golden Nebula (3)

—Jeonse…? And where exactly is this place called northern Australia?

The residents of Tehen had abandoned their homeland and were now migrating to the unfamiliar planet called Earth.

For Duke Dalqui, that essentially meant taking responsibility for his clan as refugees, so it was only natural that fear crept in.

He didn’t even know what kind of planet Earth was, so naturally he couldn’t understand much of what his counterpart was saying.

Of course, Yeongwoo was as relaxed as ever.

“Ah, Australia? It’s already proven to be a great place to live. The people who settled there first are all doing well and even moved up to Seoul.”

—…?

The duke’s expression grew even more complicated after hearing this, so Yeongwoo quickly added an explanation.

“There aren’t any other tenants or natives nearby, so it should be livable while you adapt to Earth. Though if you go a bit farther south, it’s basically all desert…”

Yeongwoo scratched his cheek with an awkward smile.

“But you said you have a circulation system that can make rain fall, right? Then it shouldn’t become a major problem.”

The ideal picture in Yeongwoo’s mind was simple: the residents of Tehen would establish a settlement in northern Australia and use the central deserts as a workspace.

That way, Earthship itself would be capable of repairing or modifying ships on its own.

If needed, they could even use Australia’s desert regions as hangars.

“Australia is a huge landmass, so space won’t be an issue. But there are still natives living near the southern end, so try not to go too far.”

—…I still don’t quite understand. If it is large, exactly how large is it?

At that, Yeongwoo looked around at the frogs gathered everywhere.

“Everyone here right now—that’s the entire population of Tehen, right? How many are there?”

Without even pausing to calculate, Duke Dalqui immediately replied.

—364,221.

“Oh, really? Then even if every single person builds their own house, you still wouldn’t run out of land. Of course, that’s nothing compared to the total surface area of this planet.”

—We don’t need many houses. We simply need a lot of water.

“There’s… a large wetland in the north, so go take a look first. And if you really don’t like it, I’ll send you somewhere else.”

After saying this much, Yeongwoo went straight to the main point.

“Then it’s time to collect the jeonse deposit. About 360,000 people… so roughly 3.6 billion, right?”

[PR/N: Jeonse is a large refundable security deposit instead of monthly rent.]

Essentially, that meant a permanent jeonse lease on Earthship for the modest sum of just 3.6 billion Karma.

“At this price it’s basically a steal. If this isn’t a cosmic relief agency, then what is…?”

As Yeongwoo counted on his fingers, Duke Dalqui cautiously asked.

—Could you explain exactly what jeonse is?

“Ah, it’s basically a type of security deposit.”

—A security deposit?

“You leave 3.6 billion with me while living on Earthship. And someday, when you leave Earthship, I’ll return the money.”

—Returned… money?

The duke looked as if he couldn’t believe it.

At the same time, he seemed somewhat reassured.

He glanced at his younger sister, Lady Kanaph, then immediately ordered all the frogs present to collect 10,000 Karma each.

“Of course, any expenses caused by you will be deducted from that deposit. For example, if we have to build an absurdly massive lake in the middle of Australia, or create artificial rainbows.”

—…That won’t be necessary. Not as long as the circulation device functions properly in this place called Australia.

“Good. Then the agreement is settled. Let’s finalize it with the lease contract.”

Yeongwoo raised a lease agreement into the air above his palm, the document notably lacking a specified duration.

Not writing a lease term was Yeongwoo’s own form of consideration.

Even if he failed to be re-elected and disappeared someday, the residents of Tehen would still be able to live in Australia.

“The validity of this contract will remain even if Earthship’s representative changes, or if the head of the Izori family changes. Duke, please seal this section here.”

Yeongwoo extended his glowing blue palm, and Duke Dalqui touched the contract with the signet ring on his right hand.

Piaaaat!

The lease contract between Earthship and Izori shone brightly, signaling that it had taken effect.

“Congratulations. Everyone here, including the Duke, is now an Earthling.”

—…Earthling.

Duke Dalqui and the residents of Tehen had suddenly become tenants of a planetary ship.

It was as if the unpredictable force that Yeongwoo wore like a cloak had swallowed Tehen whole.

—So now we are destined to wander space for the rest of our lives?

“We’ll be traveling through space.”

—……

“Doesn’t it excite you? You’ll be living in what will become the strongest planetary ship in history.”

At those words, the duke’s expression darkened even more.

—Even now we are fleeing after abandoning our planet to escape Salzeo. What exactly are we supposed to look forward to?

Yeongwoo looked up at the sky as he replied.

“In just a few more days, that so-called Salzeo won’t even be able to stand against us.”

Right now, it was true that they had to run from Salzeo’s main forces.

But only dozens of hours ago, Earthship had been incapable of fleet battles at all.

And yet now, they had easily destroyed Salzeo’s advance force, and even turned the vanguard fleet commander Ashki into cosmic dust.

So if they could keep growing for just a few more days…

“I promise you in the name of Renaissance. If you live on Earthship, you’ll no longer suffer invasions from foreign powers, and absurd things like your younger sibling being kidnapped won’t happen again.”

—…!

Kidnapping a younger sibling.

At those words, the duke’s eyes widened sharply.

—That was simply an unfortunate incident.

“In this universe, misfortune usually visits the weak.”

Yeongwoo inhaled deeply before continuing.

“But your misfortune ends here. Earthship will be safer than anywhere else.”

With that, Yeongwoo spoke to Earth.

‘Time to head back.’

○ Then we’ll set the return coordinates to northern Australia?

‘Since we’re returning together with the residents of Tehen, going straight to Australia is the easiest. I can always come back quickly later using the transit route anyway.’

[Translator - Night]

[Proofreader - Gun]

○ Understood. Initiating summoning immediately.

Soon, Earth’s presence faded from Yeongwoo’s consciousness, and glowing blue lines began drawing themselves along the outskirts of the area where Yeongwoo and the residents of Tehen were gathered.

Piaaaaat!

「Earthship’s wide-area summoning function has been activated.」

「Those who do not wish to be summoned, please exit the designated area.」

A vast curtain of light descended from beyond the sky, wrapping around the entire region.

—W-what?

—Wh-what is that?!

—…Hk!

The residents of Tehen crouched down in fear, and even Yeongwoo felt a chill at the sheer scale of the summoning.

If one didn’t know it was Earthship, they might have thought the Reset was beginning again—the pressure radiating from it was that overwhelming.

‘Were we really this powerful…?’

Then again, the enemies they had faced so far were all strong.

Compared to the universe as a whole, very few planets could stand against Earthship.

So it made sense that even a large-scale rescue operation could intimidate others.

Shuaaah…!

The curtain gripping the area thickened further, and a giant timer appeared in the air, displaying 30 seconds.

It was showing the time remaining until return.

—Quite terrifying. Isn’t this essentially an invasion from an outside force?

At Duke Dalqui’s words, Yeongwoo shook his head.

“Looks like you’ve never experienced a real invasion. A true invasion is far more merciless and coercive than this.”

There was no need to look far—just compared to the Reset, this was gentle.

Earthship even politely explained that anyone who didn’t want to be summoned could simply leave the area.

Beep!

At last, the timer overhead reached zero.

A massive pillar of pure white light shot down from the universe beyond the sky.

Kwaaaaaaa!

It was a colossal beam large enough to engulf all 360,000 frogs gathered there.

—A-ahhh!

—Save us…!

The frogs screamed in shock at the unprecedented phenomenon, and soon pure white light filled everything.

* * *

—H-hey…!

Within the all-consuming whiteness, Duke Dalqui’s frightened voice rang out.

Then—

Swaaah!

As vision suddenly returned, he found himself sitting flat on the ground without realizing it.

Kuuuung!

And the same was true for all 360,000 frogs gathered in the area.

Thud, thump!

All around, frogs toppled or collapsed where they stood, and seeing this, Yeongwoo instinctively realized that Tehen’s settlement on Earth would not be a smooth one.

The fallen frogs pressed their palms against the ground, their expressions troubled.

The reason soon came directly from Duke Dalqui.

—The ground feels like solid stone.

In other words, it was far too dry for them to live comfortably.

“This used to be territory where the Red-Foot Orcs lived. If you go a bit farther from here, there’s a large wetland, so it would be better to establish your settlement there.”

Even as Yeongwoo spoke, in the distance the Red-Foot Orcs were dismantling tents marked with red flags.

The previous tenants hadn’t fully finished moving out yet.

“They’re still cleaning up a bit. Let’s head toward the wetlands for now.”

Yeongwoo gave an awkward smile and pointed in a random direction.

Duke Dalqui looked at the circulation device that had been transported along with the residents and asked,

—Is there an ocean here?

“The ocean? There is, but it’s saltwater.”

—Our equipment should be more than capable of neutralizing the composition.

“We’re already near the northern edge of the continent. If you go a little farther north, you’ll reach the sea.”

—…Then we should be able to establish a settlement somehow.

The duke nodded, though he still looked uncertain about how they were supposed to survive in this unfamiliar place.

This was also Yeongwoo’s first time bringing in tenants on such a scale, so he couldn’t help but worry too.

“Do you need anything else?”

—First, we need to inspect the surrounding area. How do we contact you?

Yeongwoo pointed toward a tall transit station in the distance.

“Take that and head to Gwangjin-gu in Metal Seoul. The control room is there. Even if I’m not around, someone will come to greet you. I’ll inform them in advance.”

In truth, there wasn’t anyone in Earthship’s control room more wicked than Yeongwoo himself.

So there was no need to worry about how the tenants would be treated.

“Well then…”

Yeongwoo straightened up and looked around.

Duke Dalqui nodded.

—If the master of a planetary ship has done this much, then it must already be more than enough consideration. You should go now. We’ll manage the settlement ourselves somehow.

“Alright. If any problems arise, please contact me.”

Yeongwoo extended his hand for a handshake—a traditional Earth greeting.

Sshk.

Duke Dalqui clasped Yeongwoo’s hand with both of his and said:

—We look forward to working together. I hope this ship does not end up half-destroyed like the one we saw before.

Yeongwoo blinked a few times, then shook the duke’s hand.

“…Welcome to Earthship.”

[Translator - Night]

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