HBWnovel Chapter 394
Chapter 394
[Translator - Night]
[Proofreader - Gun]
Chapter 394: Big Hand (4)
‘Wha... 3 billion?’
Yeongwoo’s eyes widened.
It was 3 billion karma in cash, not even discreetly handled.
It was essentially a congratulatory gift thrown out for Lemu to see.
‘W-Well, it’s definitely good, but... what is he planning for the second round?’
Knowing the chairman’s personality through the cards, Yeongwoo couldn’t help but worry.
Saving Face
As the characteristic of the chairman’s "Dogo Card" suggested, the real chairman was highly sensitive to immediate victories.
There was no way such a chairman would show weakness at an event like this.
If anything, he would keep up the competition of congratulatory money even if it meant bankrupting the company.
Of course, the host would make an enormous amount of money, but to Yeongwoo, who now considered Dogo as "his company," this was not a welcome development.
‘My company and the chairman aren’t just money sources. They’re my backing.’
If the company’s situation worsened, what would happen?
Naturally, the cosmic standing of "Jeong Yeongwoo07" would weaken.
—Th... Three billion! Thank you very much.
Kobu received the signed receipt with great reverence, then spread his left hand to indicate the main building.
At the entrance, Chobu and Tobu were politely waiting for Dogo.
—The wedding hall preparations are complete. Guests may enter according to the ranking of their congratulatory money.
At that moment, a series of numbers appeared above everyone's heads.
Pa-pa-pa-pat!
It was a kind of numbering system.
It represented both the order of entry into the main hall and the ranking of their financial contributions.
—Already time to enter, huh?
Having bought the "1" spot above his head with a staggering 3 billion, Dogo nodded slightly and began moving towards the main hall.
Watching this, Yeongwoo grabbed Kobu, who was following the chairman, and whispered very softly.
“Wait. There’s still something to do.”
Kobu tried to shake him off and follow Dogo.
—P-Please don’t do this! This puts me in a difficult position...!
For Kobu, attending to the level 3 entity Dogo was far more important than following the host’s instructions.
Yeongwoo had anticipated this.
“It’s a direct order from the chairman.”
—R-Really?
Kobu stopped in his tracks and turned to Yeongwoo.
—What did the chairman order? Please tell me.
“Homeostasis.”
—......?
“The guests from Earth won’t be able to withstand Mara’s presence. He said to reinforce homeostasis by creating a human-only seating area.”
Yeongwoo vaguely pointed somewhere in the main building.
Kobu nodded.
—As expected, the chairman is most considerate. Just as I have heard.
‘...What the hell has he heard? Has he lost his mind from nervousness...?’
Yeongwoo couldn’t relate, but Kobu was already moving to the next step.
—Rumors say that beings below grade 9 will perish when Mara descends.
“...What? Below grade 9?”
That meant every guest below grade 10 at today’s wedding was destined to die.
Even now, extraterrestrial guests were descending from their ships lined up in the sky.
The main ceremony was approaching.
“Isn’t grade 9 too high a threshold? That means just sparing humans isn’t enough.”
Yeongwoo said, incredulous.
Kobu nodded.
—That is correct.
“What?”
—This is precisely why it’s almost unheard of to invite the King of Ten Thousand Demons as a guest.
“...Shit, that makes sense.”
Yeongwoo scratched his cheek.
But they had already invited him—what now?
Moreover, Mara was the only running mate for the level 3 chairman.
Among the level 3 beings Yeongwoo knew, only Dogo and Mara existed.
“In that case, instead of a human-only seating area, we need a Mara Spectator Zone, right?”
—A seating area for beings below grade 9?
“Yes. Regardless of species, all guests should be able to watch Mara without dying.”
—That would require significant structural reinforcement.
Now it was Kobu’s turn to sound troubled.
—We would need a considerable additional payment...
“How much?”
There was no time for drawn-out negotiations, so Yeongwoo cut straight to the point.
“How much will it cost to protect all beings below grade 9? Give me the total sum.”
Kobu flicked his fingers as he calculated, then answered.
—48 million Karma.
“...What?”
Lord Bang looked up at the sky.
—To celebrate Mara’s death in advance.
Mara’s death.
Could it really happen?
But Yeongwoo had already made a promise to the brothers—to help them seek their revenge.
They had become stars in the sky believing in that promise.
How could he betray them now?
Today, he might meet Mara as a guest at the ceremony, but next time, they might cross swords.
‘No... if I think about it, I might end up being the one on the run. After all, I plan to take Mara’s wedding gift and flee, and I must carry out my brothers’ revenge one way or another.’
As Yeongwoo steeled his resolve, the rankings of wedding contributions, mostly filled with alien names, once again saw an entry from Earth.
Ping!
[1st place] Dogo, 「3 billion」
[2nd place] Lemu, Lightning Rod 「1.6 billion」
[3rd place] Kwaya’s Hammer, Private
[4th place] Bantubangtong, 「100 million」
[5th place] Cheok, 90 million
“Huh, Lord Bang?”
A whole 100 million karma gifted.
He was dead serious about witnessing Mara in person today and firming up his resolve.
That meant the money was essentially the price for confronting Mara.
If, by any chance, Mara doesn’t show up...
As Yeongwoo considered the worst possible scenario, his fears were quickly put to rest.
Rumble...!
The sky darkened to an ashen hue, and the congratulatory wreath sent from Dogo started to unlock its restraints.
Clank!
“...No way.”
As Yeongwoo muttered in a low voice, Lord Bang suddenly drew his sword.
—Little foot, is it him? A disgusting stench fills the air.
He then looked up at the sky with a face full of resentment.
—I still have to look up at him. Can you understand how that makes me feel?
Grit.
Lord Bang ground his teeth.
Then, at last—
—Ah.
—This is...
The generals behind him furrowed their brows and clenched their teeth.
They too had caught the disgusting stench that Lord Bang spoke of.
What kind of smell are they talking about?
Yeongwoo, however, couldn’t sense the smell they referred to.
Instead—
Fwoooosh!
The already darkened sky grew even more intensely gray, waves of ashen color rippling outward.
It looked almost like—
“...Huh?”
Yeongwoo’s eyes widened as he sensed something.
At the same moment, he turned his gaze toward the main hall of the ceremony.
Shhhhhhh!
A torrential downpour of ashen rain suddenly started pouring from the sky.
Before Mara even descended, the void matter was already surging forth.
“Mara is here! If you want to live, take cover inside the ceremony hall!”
Yeongwoo shouted, and the raindrops that had just begun striking the guests’ heads suddenly froze in place.
Whoosh!
As if time itself had stopped—or rather, as if time had almost stopped.
The entire area around the ceremony hall had been swallowed by the domain of the void.
‘I’m... I’m screwed.’
Sensing an ominous turn of events, Yeongwoo darted his eyes around, and then—
From beyond the ashen downpour, a chilling voice resonated.
「The groom must show due respect before the Void.」
At that moment, an overwhelming pressure crashed down onto Yeongwoo’s knees.
The suffocating energy blanketing the area was forcing him to kneel.
Yeongwoo gritted his teeth, barely resisting the bizarre force, and finally managed to speak.
“I have yet to kneel even before my Chairman. If I were to show courtesy to the Void first, I would be dishonoring my Chairman.”
But Mara was not one to be swayed by words.
Shhhhhh!
Instead of answering, the pressure on Yeongwoo’s knees intensified.
‘Hurk...?’
If he refused to kneel, then his knees would simply be crushed until he collapsed.
Shit.
Just as Yeongwoo braced himself to make a decision—
—Mara!
A thunderous voice boomed from inside the ceremony hall.
—Enough of your nonsense! Come and see my throne already!
[Translator - Night]
[Proofreader - Gun]