Ch.319Half-Baked (13)

Something feels ominous.

“I can’t just leave you here.”

“Why, kid? Afraid Renatus will invade while you’re gone?”

“Almost certainly.”

It was safe a few days ago, but not anymore. Both Powehi and Renatus must have accumulated enough energy to descend into this dimension by now.

I was worried about Cartesia.

“Should I switch to a video conference instead? Or maybe not attend at all…”

I shook my head mid-sentence.

First of all, not attending is impossible.

If I cancel after setting up appointments with important people, they’ll definitely ask for a reason, and I can’t exactly say, “I think foreign gods might attack my home!” I’m not some prophet.

The only viable option might be a video conference.

[That would be difficult.]

“I figured as much.”

[The meeting content itself will be confidential, so it needs to be in person. I ask for your understanding.]

Of course, Shterm is in the west. That guy is probably eavesdropping on this conversation right now.

In the end, there was no other way.

[— You have gifted 30,000 coins and 100,000 pron to the God of Wisdom and Curiosity.]

“This should be enough to hold out for two days if anything happens, right?”

“No, give me more.”

[— You have gifted an additional 30,000 coins and 100,000 pron to the God of Wisdom and Curiosity.]

“More.”

[— You have gifted an additional 50,000 coins and 150,000 pron to the God of Wisdom and Curiosity.]

“More.”

“I’ve given you almost everything!”

Cartesia pouted.

“How stingy. Where did all those coins and pron go? Did you give them to that horny black-haired wench?”

“I gave most of them to you. Don’t you remember?”

“…Hmm.”

“Why are you avoiding my gaze?”

Cartesia clicked her tongue.

“About your coins? If you want them back, come and get them. I left them all in a black hole.”

“Ha.”

I sighed.

[— You have gifted an additional 80,000 coins and 200,000 pron to the God of Wisdom and Curiosity.]

“That’s all my reserves, so take good care of them this time. Don’t lose them.”

“Kid, do I look like an idiot who can’t keep track of my own things?”

“Yes.”

“How insolent.”

Cartesia extended a tentacle and tapped my head. It felt heavy. Maybe because I gave her pron. If I took a direct hit from this tentacle now, my head would probably split open.

“Don’t misunderstand. Got any more?”

“That’s really the last of it. When I get back, I’ll only give you 5,000 per day, so be prepared.”

“I’ll die at that rate.”

Nothing I can do. That’s exactly how much the “Star Egg” can produce in a day. It’s like living paycheck to paycheck.

In the end, giving coins and pron doesn’t solve the fundamental problem.

Either defeat Renatus or research the crystal.

I need to do one of those two things.

“I’ll be back.”

For now, I plan to do both.

***

Northern Galaxy.

The region where the capital of the Laniakea Federation is located.

Here was a planetary system with the same name as the nation, and it also housed the residences of political and financial figures, including the Federal President. It was truly the center of politics and culture.

Naturally, security was ironclad.

The entry screening wasn’t easy from the start.

“You are indeed Eidel von Rheinland. You may enter.”

From the entry shuttle to the orbital descent vessel, military ships, first, second, and third search teams, capital entry checkpoints, and if that wasn’t enough, six random inspections.

It felt like hours were spent just on identity verification.

“Do people here have facial recognition disorder or something?”

“It’s that important of a planetary system.”

No wonder they advertise a crime rate in the 0% range.

Of course, it wouldn’t be false advertising. The Laniakea planetary system was a “Golden Zone” within the Aether Belt, like Alcatraz. Protected by stellar power, it was impossible for foreign gods to interfere.

In other words, nothing concerning should happen here.

“I can see resonators, aether generators, and trap-like structures.”

“Yeah. They’ve laid them out like mines everywhere.”

“Foreign gods won’t appear here.”

“Saying that is exactly when they show up.”

I just hope the concerning things don’t happen.

“There will be an identity verification.”

As we tried to enter the scheduled meeting room, a security guard appeared and asked. Sonia and I naturally presented our credentials.

The guard drew blood, performed iris scans, and did all sorts of excessive checks before finally giving permission after 30 minutes.

“From here, androids cannot enter due to security concerns.”

Only to me.

Sonia’s eyes looked pitiful.

After sending Sonia to the waiting room, I continued on.

The meeting room contained only one large round table and about forty chairs. No electronic equipment whatsoever. Not even a common telescreen in sight.

As I sat and waited, important figures arrived one after another.

Ministers, representatives from each cardinal direction, the Federal President and Prime Minister, four-star generals…

And me.

What a breathtaking lineup.

After brief greetings and handshakes, the meeting began as soon as the President took his seat. The Minister of Health spoke first.

“Currently, the eastern region is under strict control due to high infection rates. Pron addiction patients are increasing in the northern and southern regions as well, with various infection routes: food, air, insects, animals and plants, waterways, soil.”

“How is the situation in the west?”

“The west has fewer of these problems but is suffering from rampant cult activity. Just the day before yesterday, a resonator factory belonging to Stronium Industries was bombed.”

I heard about that from Ireh.

“The situation is heading toward catastrophe.”

Problems in all four directions.

It was a sign that the final act was approaching.

“Let’s allocate additional budget to the eastern region.”

“The western, northern, and southern regions also have numerous problems. What if regional conflicts arise because of such statements? Would the parliament even approve such a budget concentration?”

“Then what would you suggest we do?”

The Prime Minister asked. At the same time, everyone’s gaze turned to me. At that moment, I was idly balancing a pen.

It rolled and fell under the desk with a tap.

“Doctor.”

“…The Federation as a whole is in a precarious state. Concentrating the budget in one area is not a solution, nor is distributing it evenly across all regions, in my opinion.”

I looked down at the fallen pen with half-closed eyes and lowered my voice.

“The Astronomical Research Institute has reported three thousand massive foreign gods. Although we’ve made significant technological progress, we’re still far from ready for all-out war against them.”

The men in military uniforms nodded.

“Passive measures won’t solve the fundamental problem. As they say, the best defense is offense.”

“Do you have a method in mind?”

I answered while picking up the fallen pen.

“We’re going to hunt foreign gods.”

Good, that was natural.

“You’re suggesting we take proactive action.”

“Like developing asymmetric warfare capabilities specifically for foreign gods.”

“That’s right.”

“But how exactly? Do you have a specific plan…”

“I’ve already spoken with Ministers Ekaron and Lashminer. I believe Your Excellency has also received the report. I’ll show you directly now.”

I stood up and rummaged through my bag. I pulled out a stack of papers and placed them one by one on the large table. Dozens of papers fitted together like a puzzle revealed a massive physical design.

“What is this?”

“A graviton bomb.”

A more detailed blueprint that hadn’t even been published in academic papers for security reasons.

This was the moment when the decisive weapon was finally revealed to the high-ranking officials.

***

“…That concludes my presentation.”

The officials who heard Eidel’s explanation were divided into two reactions.

Those who agreed, thinking, “Hey, this sounds good,” and those who opposed, saying, “This is just as uncertain as anything else.”

Each had their reasons.

The available money was limited, and so was time.

“First, we’ll discuss with parliament how much additional budget can be allocated.”

“And even before that, we still need to save the eastern region. The death toll is increasing daily.”

Budget ultimately means money, and money is a zero-sum game. To do one thing, you must give up another.

Moreover, since the purpose of a nation is to protect its citizens and national assets, passive countermeasures couldn’t be completely ruled out.

The opposing officials’ arguments were valid too.

Perhaps because of this, Eidel had a headache.

“Please don’t think too negatively, Doctor. Dr. Rheinland’s views are certainly reasonable. It’s just that policy decisions take time.”

The Prime Minister patted Eidel’s shoulder in consolation.

“The Ministry of Science and Technology will actively review the blueprint you provided today. I ask for your patience until the results come in.”

“Thank you, Your Excellency.”

Eidel left the meeting building with Sonia.

Even as they returned, he had only one concern.

How to solve the money problem, the limited budget issue.

“I’ll have to ask Seti.”

At Eidel’s casual remark, Sonia quietly said a prayer while looking toward the southern galaxy where the Rheinland family home was located.

She could almost hear someone’s wailing already.

***

Meanwhile, there was a foreign god who noticed he was absent from the Rheinland mothership.

Needless to say, it was Renatus.

“Teacher, now is the perfect opportunity. Let’s go down, squeeze Cartesia, and defeat that human individually when he returns.”

“Good idea.”

The two foreign gods snickered.

They assessed the situation and prepared to descend to the Rheinland mothership.

“Wait, Teacher. Those humans from before are there.”

Powehi pointed.

Rustila, Zernya, Ireh.

The three women were gathered at Eidel’s home.

Two being his wives made sense, but Ireh Hazlen’s presence made their intention clear.

[— The ‘Great Triangle’ effect is active.]

“They knew we would attack from the beginning.”

Vega, Deneb, Altair.

The three constellations surrounding a half-baked foreign god.

“…So they’re treating a half-baked constellation as a comrade. How amusing, truly amusing.”

“What will you do?”

“Is there anything to consider? Let’s devour them all.”

“We only have a few minutes to descend there. Can we manage with just that?”

“Can’t we manage with those few minutes?”

Renatus extended his mist, creating a rift.

“My disciple, you seem to have forgotten who I am. Let me show you again, so you can engrave it firmly in your mind.”