[Translator - Night]
[Proofreader - Gun]
Chapter 708: Monstrous Ship (2)
A suicide ship.
Out of all the countless words he had heard in space so far, it was by far the most violent-sounding one.
“A suicide ship…?”
Earth ships did have self-destruct functions too, but they weren’t built from the start with bombs planted inside them, were they?
But this werewolf was saying that a personal vessel once ridden by a Great One had an actual self-destruct function built into it.
“Why would something like a suicide ship even exist? And you said it belonged to some Chairman, didn’t you?”
-How could we possibly understand the profound intentions of such beings? In any case, it seems he died before ever using that function.
“Ah.”
Come to think of it, that was true.
The fact that the suicide ship was being sold in the first place meant its self-destruct function had never been used, didn’t it?
“No, wait. Then how can you trust the self-destruct function? What if it fails at the most critical moment?”
-A monstrous ship’s special function is the very reason for its existence. Therefore, it will absolutely explode.
At that, Dots Salzeo cut in with a deeply crumpled expression.
-What kind of insane conversation even is this? Why would anyone buy a ship that is guaranteed to explode? And with our family’s money, no less.
“Because nobody would expect the ship to explode. That’s how you use it.”
-…Use it where, exactly?
“Anywhere. It all depends on how you use it. I even have immortal soldiers, after all.”
He was referring to the “friends” he could summon for a limited amount of time.
As long as operating the ship wasn’t too difficult, couldn’t he load his friends into it and launch a living bomb?
Of course, even so, he had no intention of buying a suicide ship at a high price.
“Hey, where is the suicide ship? And how much does it cost?”
At Yeongwoo’s question, the werewolf waved his hand and pushed Kenicsita toward the back.
Swoosh.
Then this time, he crooked a finger in another direction.
In response, a large rectangular metallic object floating far away slowly drifted closer.
“…That’s a ship? Well, my Chairman’s ship didn’t exactly look like a ship either.”
The suicide ship summoned by the werewolf was, truly, a perfectly clean rectangle.
Its surface shone silver like Kenicsita’s, and countless tiny seams ran across the outer hull.
“Is that one made of Godial too?”
-Of course. If self-destruction is ever activated, it must at least be capable of reaching its destination without being shot down.
As he spoke, the werewolf pointed at the tiny seams in the suicide ship’s hull.
-It appears to be a perfect rectangle on the outside, but in reality, it is itself a bomb composed of countless fragments of Godial.
“So if an explosion occurs inside, Godial fragments scatter in every direction?”
-Precisely.
“So it’s basically a fragmentation grenade.”
-Combined with the immense explosion, the force also propels Godial fragments outward in an attack, rendering cover largely meaningless.
“So then, how much?”
-This monstrous ship is…
This was the most important moment.
As the werewolf slightly opened his mouth, everyone focused on his next words, and soon the price of the suicide ship was revealed.
-I will let it go for 30 billion.
“30 billion?”
In truth, this was still enormously expensive compared to normal ships, but after hearing 120 billion earlier, it somehow felt cheap.
“You’re telling me to burn 30 billion on a single missile…?”
-Shipmaster, this is not a missile. Its functionality as a vessel is also exceptional. After all, it possesses a Godial outer hull by default.
“But Kenicsita has three layers.”
-And that is why it costs 120 billion, dear customer.
“Hmm.”
Rendered speechless, Yeongwoo shifted his gaze toward the pit over there.
“Then what about the other one?”
-You mean the final monstrous ship.
“Yeah. Let’s see that one too before deciding. Anyway, that last one’s cheaper than Kenicsita too, right?”
-Yes. It is 100 billion.
“What, you bastard?”
It was technically 20 billion cheaper, but Yeongwoo couldn’t help getting irritated.
After all, with the money he currently had, it seemed impossible to buy all three ships and strange cannons too.
-It may not possess triple-layered armor like Kenicsita, but it is a vessel with sufficient value.
Swoosh.
At last, when the werewolf crooked his finger again, the suicide ship slid aside, opening a path.
Then, from deep within the pit, a craft shaped almost like a trident rose upward… no, it looked closer to a fighter craft.
“This one’s a bit smaller.”
-It is indeed classified as a semi-medium vessel.
“Then it’s way smaller than Kenicsita. So why does it cost 100 billion?”
In practical terms, it was actually a more expensive ship than Kenicsita.
-Yes. To begin with, the entire hull is made of Godial, and among all the ships here, it possesses the greatest mobility.
“A fast ship. Sure, that’s nice and all, but that alone isn’t enough. This is a 100-billion ship.”
When Yeongwoo voiced his dissatisfaction, the werewolf added further explanation.
-It also comes equipped with stealth functionality and a ‘navigator.’
“A navigator?”
-Yes. It is a characteristic occasionally seen in monstrous ships. A navigator who offers blind loyalty to the owner of the vessel is incorporated into the ship itself.
“You mean like artificial intelligence? So basically it has autopilot?”
-No. The navigator is literally bound inside the vessel.
“What?”
Yeongwoo shouted involuntarily.
At this, the werewolf tilted his head as though he couldn’t understand the reason for the reaction.
-There is nothing to worry about. A navigator’s lifespan is comparable to the vessel’s expected lifespan, so—
“No, no. That’s not the issue. Then isn’t the navigator basically a prisoner? Who would want to live trapped inside a ship like that?”
-It is the result of a covenant. There must have been a reason the navigator inside entered into a lifelong contract with a Great One.
“That damn covenant.”
Then again, wasn’t Yeongwoo also accumulating covenants with black holes every day?
Like debt piling up.
“I don’t know about anything else, but I’m curious about this navigator that comes as part of the ship.”
-If you purchase Soruon, you may meet the navigator directly.
Soroun.
That was the name of the monstrous ship with the built-in navigator.
“So if I buy that ship, the navigator becomes my property too?”
-Of course.
“Then whether I free him or not is up to me, right?”
At Yeongwoo’s words, the werewolf stared into empty space for a moment in thought.
-It will probably be possible. That seems to be something requiring confirmation.
Then Dots interrupted again.
-And why would you do that? You can’t even properly pilot a fighter craft anyway, so isn’t it better to have a navigator attached to the ship?
“That’s true, but wouldn’t it be even better to free the guy and use him on the Earth ship too? Right now, the only proper sailor on the Earth ship is Assistant Manager.”
So if they added another navigator, wouldn’t that be useful in many ways?
And would a Great One really have taken just any navigator and seated them in a personal ship?
No matter how he looked at it, the navigator was bound to be exceptional.
‘This is basically like buying a top-tier navigator and an ultra-high-speed ship for 100 billion.’
If he thought of it as including recruitment costs for a navigator, the price no longer felt quite so excessive.
[Translator - Night]
[Proofreader - Gun]
From another perspective, it was essentially acquiring the personal navigator of a Great One.
But the problem was—
‘Honestly, I like Kenicsita itself way more. Triple Godial armor… I don’t think even most Chairmen own something like that.’
Then what if he gave up on the suicide ship and bought both Kenicsita and Soroun instead?
‘That’d be 220 billion total. Still not easy.’
Of course, when else would he get another chance to acquire ships belonging to Chairmen? But even so, from Yeongwoo’s current position, it was an excessively burdensome expense.
And since he had come all the way here, shouldn’t he buy some strange cannons too?
“Let me make one proposal.”
-Speak.
“I’ll buy both Kenicsita and Soroun. In exchange, throw in the suicide ship for free.”
-…What did you say?
“Wouldn’t this be the biggest transaction since you opened your shop? That thing’s been sitting around as unsold inventory this whole time anyway.”
-Even so, I cannot simply give away one of the few monstrous ships remaining.
“Then forget the suicide ship. I’ll buy the other two in a lump sum, so give me a 40% discount.”
-Impossible.
“30%.”
-…That price difference is greater than the value of the suicide ship. And in case you have forgotten, Shipmaster, I have already provided an enormous discount based on your covenant.
Kenicsita’s original price was roughly 400 billion Karma.
So asking for an even lower price after it had already been discounted to 120 billion was, in truth, a completely absurd demand.
“No, you already gave me a huge discount. So what difference does another 30% off the reduced price make?”
-It makes an enormous difference. Is that ‘enormous difference’ not precisely what you yourself are struggling to afford?
The werewolf was no ordinary businessman either, and he refused to back down easily.
“In exchange, I’ll also form a survival covenant for your descendants. But 30%. What do you say?”
-That covenant is already included. The covenant related to the Kenicsita transaction is for my sake, but Soroun is intended to proceed through a covenant concerning my descendants.
“…Then.”
Yeongwoo squeezed his eyes shut.
Then he pointed toward the pit filled with all kinds of strange items.
“I’ll buy not just the two monstrous ships but some strange cannons too. In exchange, 20% off.”
At last, the wolf merchant hesitated.
He turned his gaze toward the pit.
“When are you ever going to get another customer like me?”
As Yeongwoo added that as though pressing him, the wolf merchant finally nodded.
-Very well. However, the discount applies only to the monstrous ships. The cannons are not highly priced compared to the ships to begin with, so I cannot discount those.
“Fine, I’ll accept that much. The ships are the biggest expense anyway.”
With those words, Yeongwoo held out Neheren Salzeo’s ship requisition rights.
“One last thing. Check how much is in this.”
Receiving the requisition rights, the werewolf once again activated the circuits on the back of his hand.
Piiiiit!
-This one is somewhat smaller. 40 billion.
“So the requisition rights can pull in 120 billion.”
-That would be correct. Do you have enough cash on hand?
When the werewolf asked for confirmation, Yeongwoo checked his balance.
“I’ve got around 82 billion in cash.”
So together with the requisition rights, that totaled 202 billion.
Since the two monstrous ships would cost 176 billion after the 20% discount, the transaction itself was technically possible.
However, after blinking several times, the werewolf took a step backward.
Thunk.
-This is a little difficult, dear customer.
“What is?”
-The pre-discount price of the two monstrous ships is 220 billion. Yet your total available budget is…
“Yeah, it wasn’t 220 billion to begin with.”
-The reason I agreed to the additional discount was because I expected you to spend more than 220 billion in total, including strange cannons.
“Yeah, that’s fair enough.”
Yeongwoo could fully understand the other party’s position.
-It is an honor to welcome a Planetary Shipmaster as a customer, but at this rate, it seems difficult to proceed with the transaction.
The werewolf was actually drawing a line against a Planetary Shipmaster.
At this, Yeongwoo instinctively reached for his sword, then changed his mind.
“Then… what about buying the strange cannons on credit? In exchange, I’ll absolutely push the total payment above 220 billion.”
-But extending credit…
“Ah, right. No way credit exists in the black market. But I’m a Planetary Shipmaster, aren’t I? I’ll repay every bit of the debt within a week. I swear upon Chairman Dogo’s name.”
[Translator - Night]
[Proofreader - Gun]
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