[Translator - Night]

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Chapter 541: Black Customers (4)

“What… what the hell are you saying? Just carry this prosthetic leg and walk into the vault?”

When Yeongwoo made a dumbfounded face, Koatu explained.

— With this leg alone, you can open the central vault, and it’ll keep pointing you in its direction.

“No, but how am I supposed to know what’s happening down there?”

— Even if something happens, what use is that one-legged cripple?

“……”

He had a point.

Besides, Yeongwoo didn’t even have the time to argue with Koatu now.

In just a little while, the remaining time would drop below five minutes.

“Damn, why are these bastards making my life so hard?”

Even so, Yeongwoo’s mind was spinning quickly.

“Oh, fine. Instead of that one-legged guy, you come with me.”

He pointed at the golden goblin sitting in the corner of the bridge.

Jeonggu tilted his head.

“Why a goblin all of a sudden?”

“We don’t know how the money inside that vault is stacked. We’ll need a porter.”

Then he gave an order to Earth.

“Prepare a drop capsule. We’re going right now.”

『I’ll drop you as close to the vault as possible. It’ll be ready in five seconds.』

As Earth rolled its eyes in a circle, it waved its hand in the air and opened a portal.

『A goblin’s small enough to carry. Just hold him and ride.』

Meaning they would use only one capsule.

Without another word, Yeongwoo called the goblin over and scooped him up lightly.

“You said there’s five minutes?”

『As of now, five minutes twenty-one seconds. By the time you arrive, you’ll have almost exactly five minutes left.』

At that, Yeongwoo tapped his wrist and conjured a five-minute ten-second timer. ᴛʜɪs ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀ ɪs ᴜᴘᴅᴀᴛᴇ ʙʏ NoveI(F)ire.net

“I’ll bring back as much as I can, so just wait five minutes.”

Then he picked up Koatu’s prosthetic leg from the floor.

“If something goes wrong down there, I might not be able to return this.”

Meaning he might have to leave it behind while fighting guards.

Koatu looked troubled, then said,

— It’s my only leg, so of course I’d like it back… but even if it’s lost, I won’t blame you, Captain.

“Good. Then I’ll see you shortly.”

With that, Yeongwoo leapt into the portal.

Ta-at!

The next moment, his surroundings shifted into the cramped interior of the drop capsule, and he felt the platform beneath his feet.

“No matter how many times I ride this, I can’t get used to it.”

Especially now, when he was carrying the golden goblin.

— Kiiik!

The goblin flattened himself against Yeongwoo’s shoulder and chest, barely hanging on.

“How do I avoid using these disposable capsules?”

He asked into the air, and Earth answered through their shared consciousness.

○ With money, what else.

“…How much?”

○ Even a cheap shuttle goes for five or six hundred million. From mid-sized ships onward, prices skyrocket.

‘Mid-sized ships… like the ones I saw those clan heads riding before?’

○ No, those were large-class. At your parents’ wedding, most guests came in mid-sized ships.

Mid-sized cost at least several billion.

Semi-large ships were over ten billion.

And as for the great families’ large-class ships, their price couldn’t even be measured.

‘Then how much is the Chairman’s ship worth?’

○ That’s a custom-made ship to his taste. I doubt you could even put a value on it. Just the production cost must be astronomical.

Then Earth added,

○ Still, compared to his stature, the Chairman’s ship isn’t that big. Actually, it’s quite small.

The Chairman’s tombship, in terms of sheer size, was only mid-class.

○ But it’s not like he couldn’t afford larger. There must be a reason.

At that moment, the capsule groaned.

Creak, clunk!

It was locked into the launch chamber.

And then—

Puuuuuum!

With a thunderous roar, the capsule fired.

“It’s right ahead, right?”

Shuaaaat!

Through the tearing wind shrieks against the hull, Yeongwoo asked.

Earth warned him.

○ Almost there. Get ready.

Then, almost simultaneously—

Kwaaaang!

A violent shock engulfed the capsule, and the surrounding metal shell burst apart in all directions.

They had arrived at Koatu’s secret vault.

“Ugh!”

Thrown out as always, Yeongwoo quickly landed on his feet.

Chuhk!

Instead of rock, he stepped on reinforced steel plating.

He was already inside part of a massive structure.

“…Huh?”

Looking up, Yeongwoo saw a vault entrance built like a temple.

First, a massive steel gate—at least fifteen meters tall—dominated his vision.

On either side stretched thick exterior walls with not even a crack.

This gate was the only entrance.

“…Those are definitely guards.”

Perched atop the gate were two huge mechanical gargoyles, clinging like ornaments—ready to leap.

“Hm.”

Sensing a fight, Yeongwoo handed the prosthetic to the goblin, then drew Bastard from his waist.

Shwaaat!

But the moment he stepped toward the gate—

Trkk.

As expected, the gargoyles slid down with a grating sound.

Thud, thuuud!

「Halt!」

「This is private property. Take another step and you will be executed.」

They were six meters tall, with massive inverted-triangle builds—clearly combat models.

‘At least they don’t attack right away. That’s… gentlemanly.’

Still, intruder was written all over him.

The odds of someone stumbling here by chance were zero.

Yet the gargoyles merely folded their arms and glared.

“……”

So Yeongwoo held back from striking immediately.

Instead—

Sshk.

[Translator - Night]

[Proofreader - Gun]

He grabbed Koatu’s prosthetic from the goblin and waved it in the air.

“Look, the vault owner gave me the key. I’m no intruder.”

The gargoyles bent down to inspect the leg closely.

「He’s really got the key.」

「Then… did he harm Lord Koatu?」

“…What.”

That conclusion was unexpected.

And stranger yet, these machines acted and spoke like living beings.

Almost like…

‘…Lemu.’

Essentially high-intelligence machines, with personalities.

That reminded Yeongwoo of the legendary spear, Lightning Rod, and its bizarre trait: Lemu’s Seal.

【Lemu’s Seal】

| Every time you pronounce ‘Lemu,’ you receive a thrilling jolt of lightning damage and gain favor with machines.

‘Could this be when I use it…?’

While Yeongwoo hesitated, the gargoyles grew menacing and flanked him.

Thud, thud!

「You bear no clearance mark, yet you carry the vault key…」

「That can only mean Lord Koatu has been compromised.」

“Hey, then you’re free now. Isn’t that good for you?”

But the gargoyles ignored him.

「To maintain vault security, we shall reclaim the key!」

They lunged to seize it.

Whooosh!

“What?!”

Their arms shot forward, fast enough that even the holographic guide warned at the same instant.

They were formidable.

But not compared to Yeongwoo.

Their hands slashed only empty air.

Fwap!

「……!」

「Where—?」

By the time they blinked, Yeongwoo was already at the gate.

“How do I open this? I’d rather not damage the place.”

The gargoyles’ eyes flared red as they bared their fangs.

「Die here, and your body will be carried to the organic waste disposal.」

「Only then may you pass beyond the gate!」

Rather poetic for machines.

Whoooshhh!

As they charged, Yeongwoo summoned the Lightning Rod and spoke with force.

《Lemu……!》

At once, both the weapon and Yeongwoo’s body flashed white, lightning spearing through his skull.

“Urgh!”

But he wasn’t the only one jolted.

Crackle!

The gargoyles, too, lit up white, sparks dancing off their necks as their eyes turned pale.

「Eh?」

「Ghhk!」

Arms raised to strike, they suddenly folded them politely inward.

「Ah, what have we done.」

「We nearly gravely offended a brother.」

“What the—why are you acting like this now?”

As Yeongwoo stepped back, one gargoyle placed its palm on the wall.

Thunk.

「We were hasty. There’s no way you’d lie.」

“…What?”

「If you hold Lord Koatu’s leg, you must be on his errand.」

‘These guys are nuts…’

While he muttered inwardly, the gargoyle continued.

「But rules forbid us from letting anyone through the main gate without clearance.」

“What? Then what?”

「Instead, we’ll open a machine-only passage. You are our brother, practically a machine yourself.」

‘The hell…?’

Apparently, Lemu’s Seal had created a sense of kinship so deep they now saw him as one of them.

Like the Redfoot clan giving everything to “Littlefoot.”

But this applied to all machines.

‘Is President Lemu… the king of machines?’

As Yeongwoo gaped, the wall slid open, revealing a straight corridor.

「Step onto the platform ahead. It’ll take you directly to the central vault.」

The platform bore an inscription in Universal: For Emergency Deployment.

It was a fast-track transport for guards—now lent to him.

“Th-thanks.”

Nodding, Yeongwoo stepped onto the platform with the goblin.

The wall sealed behind them, and the gargoyles spoke once more.

「If Lord Koatu yet lives, please send our regards. It’s been far too long since we saw him.」

“Haha, of course. Thanks, bro… thers!”

As the platform accelerated, Yeongwoo thought to himself,

‘If I ever build a vault, I’m never using mechanical guards.’

[Translator - Night]

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