Level 4 Human in a Ruined World-Chapter 605
[Translator - Night]
[Proofreader - Gun]
Chapter 605: A New Path (1)
“Many paths are opening just for you… Is this really a black hole?”
Yeongwoo couldn’t tear his eyes away from the final line of the tooltip, his mouth hanging open.
【Explorer】
|Many paths will open for you.
So the way to roam the universe in search of myths was really to jump through black holes?
‘Well, the universe is absurdly vast. With ordinary means, there’s no way to reach myths located unimaginably far away.’
Around that time, Mantero voiced a similar thought.
– Physically speaking, no being can traverse all of space. There simply isn’t enough mobility or time.
“Then if we use black holes, it becomes possible?”
– According to this map, at least. Just look at this…
As Mantero pointed at one of the black holes on the map, silvery-white threads stretched out from it, connecting to another black hole located almost on the opposite side of the universe.
– This distance is something a ship could never reach in its entire lifetime, even if it attempted stellar jumps nonstop. But if we use black holes… perhaps we could reach it in a single leap.
“You keep saying ‘according to this map’ and ‘perhaps.’ You’ve never actually gone into a black hole yourself, have you?”
Mantero nodded.
– That is correct. Among all navigators, would there really be anyone who has entered a black hole?
“……”
If even a former royal chief navigator said that, it was likely true.
“Then you’ll become the first navigator in history to pass through a black hole.”
– A frightening prospect.
True to his scholarly nature, Mantero reacted with remarkable restraint.
At that, Jeonggu—his face stiff with tension—pointed at the black hole looming behind the cluster of myths.
“But it says a path is opening. It doesn’t actually say it’ll let us enter the black hole, does it…?”
“What are you talking about?”
“No matter how I think about it, entering a black hole doesn’t seem good for your health. We could all get crushed the instant we go in.”
“Normally, yes. But we’re on a planetary ship—and we have this map.”
Of course, being a planetary ship didn’t automatically mean it could pass through a black hole. It was still just a very large, extremely sturdy vessel.
But this map was different.
“If the tooltip says ‘a path is opening,’ doesn’t that mean a route that didn’t exist before is now accessible?”
【Explorer】
|Many paths will open for you.
Jeonggu shook his head gloomily.
“That just means the path into the black hole is opening. It doesn’t guarantee we’ll survive.”
“No. Even before, anyone could enter a black hole if they wanted. Survival just wasn’t guaranteed.”
Yeongwoo’s argument was that, with this map, black holes—previously unusable as routes—could now function as actual passages.
In the end, it was a matter of interpretation.
“With only one life, and only one chance to test it… this is hard.”
Jeonggu crossed his arms, sinking into thought.
By contrast, Yeongwoo gazed at the black holes on the map with near certainty.
“If this map didn’t ensure safety inside black holes, there wouldn’t be tooltips like this or a path-marking function in the first place.”
“But there’s always the chance—what if we enter and die?”
“Then our journey ends there. But the name of this map is The Great Exploration. It’s a task that can only be accomplished by someone bold enough to leap into a black hole.”
“It sounds convincing, at least.”
Eventually, Jeonggu sided with Yeongwoo.
Jiseon then spoke calmly.
– Considering everything that’s happened so far, it wouldn’t be strange if we pass through a black hole safely. And it wouldn’t be surprising if we’re reduced to dust inside it either.
She scanned the increasingly tense bridge.
– So prepare for both scenarios.
“Prepare? Prepare what?”
– At the very least, get your affairs in order. There’s money that needs to be sent to Doatel, and plenty of people on this ship who want to keep living, aren’t there?
Strictly speaking, they were aliens rather than people.
For example, they had never asked weapons dealer Koatu for his opinion.
Nor had they formally asked Mantero, who would be at the helm.
Whether they were willing to risk death by crossing beyond a black hole.
“Ah, right. So—what do you all think? I’m in favor.”
As Yeongwoo raised his hand, Koatu unexpectedly raised his as well.
Swish.
– Dying inside a black hole together with a planetary ship… That wouldn’t be such a bad death.
“Right? And if we succeed, we’ll be the first residents of a planetary ship that travels through black holes.”
At that, Jeonggu pointed to the brightly glowing cameras near his son.
“Then what about the voters’ opinions?”
“Huh?”
“You’re not asking the people of Earth? This could potentially wipe out all of humanity—”
Before Jeonggu could finish, Yeongwoo hurriedly shut off the cameras with his hands.
“Don’t worry. I know what the voters want. They elected me to make big decisions on their behalf. My decision is humanity’s will.”
“But this is—”
Jeonggu opened his mouth to argue further, then closed it.
Around then, Kejen finally voiced his opinion.
– Traveling with you has been fun, but a black hole… that’s pushing it. If possible, I’d like to get off before that.
That opened the floodgates.
The black goblin and the advanced orcs—who had been afraid to speak—quickly followed.
– W-we too.
– Anywhere is fine, just let us off as soon as possible…
“Tch. A ship full of mediocrities. I suppose cowards were never needed for a Great Exploration anyway.”
Yeongwoo shook his head and turned to the most important person in this decision.
“Deputy—no, Captain. What about you?”
Mantero looked out at the void beyond the bridge.
– Though I am only acting captain, I am fulfilling the captain’s duties. I cannot abandon the ship—not until someone else takes the helm.
[Translator - Night]
[Proofreader - Gun]
“Oh. Then congratulations, Captain of the Black Hole Route.”
That left only Jiseon and Jeonggu, but neither had much choice—they were bound to Renaissance regardless.
“You two are coming with us into the black hole, right?”
“I suppose we have no choice. Whether it’s wise is another matter.”
– It’s a gamble. There’s no one we can ask for advice.
“Exactly. Even if someone out there is using black holes to travel, it’s not like we could ever meet them.”
But if Earth Ship succeeded in spatial jumps via black holes…
‘Then we’d become impossible to pursue—or even track. That means we could raise the land rental fees even higher.’
Of course, as Jiseon said, there were still things to do first.
They needed to drop off the passengers, send funds to Doatel, and—
‘If possible, we should hurry and install auxiliary turrets too. Who knows what awaits us beyond the black hole.’
Maybe they could even enhance the ship using Celulite at the place where they bought the turrets.
“All right. You first—tell that guy where you want to be dropped off.”
Pointing at Earth, Yeongwoo spoke to the advanced orcs and goblins.
They glanced nervously at the navigation system.
– Any nearby planet with a spaceport will do.
– We’ll manage from there.
For them, staying even a moment longer on a ship piloted by a lunatic who might jump into a black hole at any time was worse than finding their own way.
“Fine. That makes things easier.”
Yeongwoo then turned to Kejen.
“And you?”
– I’d like to get off before we stray too far from this galaxy. Finding the black hole entrance will take more flying anyway, won’t it?
“Probably. We’ll need to decide on a destination first to choose which black hole to use.”
– Then I’ll get off this time as well.
All three groups decided to disembark at nearby planets, and Mantero soon found a suitable one.
– There’s a commercial planet not too far away. We can dock nearby and let them disembark.
“Good. Let’s do that.”
The passenger drop-off proceeded swiftly. Afterward, Yeongwoo transferred 25.4 billion in cash to Earth.
『What’s this?』
“Funds that need to be laundered through Doatel. We might not be able to buy all the auxiliary turrets with Katangdal ingots alone, so it’s better to prepare clean money in advance.”
『Understood. I’ll send it immediately.』
Yeongwoo nodded.
“Now then… what’s left is—”
As he scanned the bridge, Yeongwoo spotted Amana standing awkwardly in a corner.
“Oh. You should go home too.”
Amana’s destination was obvious.
The holy planet Sutral.
“Is Sutral… far from here?”
– With this ship, it would not take long.
Mantero, who had already checked the coordinates, reported.
– It is some distance away, but using relay tunnels, we could arrive within half a day.
“Half a day isn’t that far? Why not just take a black hole there—”
Amana’s face drained of color.
– A-A black hole…?
“Yeah. You get home faster, and we’re planning to use black holes anyway, so we get results sooner. Everyone wins, right?”
– But… if it goes badly, wouldn’t I die too?
“That’s no different from crossing half the universe in half a day.”
[Translator - Night]
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