Chapter 56: The Hidden Side Path

Longros, the ruler of the Bibibig White Hole.

He heard a strange rumor.

The war between the Imperium and Humildas.

The number one contributor to that war, Pak Yu, was coming to subjugate him.

“Here?! That brat? Puhahaha. That old raccoon who accepted such a request must have lost his touch.”

“They say he turned down other rewards. To liberate the residents by subjugating the bandits…”

A spy in Sector 16 brought information via a high-speed vessel.

Since the media was buzzing about it, there was no way he could not know.

“Liberation, my ass. He probably just wants my land. Who is calling whom a bandit? Aren’t he and I both in the same hopeless boat? No. I’m much better than him. Don’t you agree?”

Longros truly thought so.

After all, had he not been ruling this place for a long time?

On the other hand, that brat had only caused trouble using his family’s prestige.

Though he had been briefly famous recently, that was purely luck.

“That is correct, Chief. Are there not many people in Bibibig who praise you?”

It was natural.

Anyone who criticized him was either killed or sold into slavery.

***

Our fleet approached the Bibibig White Hole at a leisurely pace.

As we got closer, the ship’s speed slowed down.

“Captain. The area around the White Hole is a natural fortress. How do you plan to face them?”

The Vice-Captain worried.

There wasn’t a complete lack of a way.

If anything, it was simple.

You just needed a large number of attackers.

Surround all sides and strike the weak spots.

However, I did not ask Humildas to attack together.

I only asked them to form a wide formation and draw attention.

“Is there no side path even if it’s a White Hole?”

A Black Hole is something that sucks everything in.

A White Hole is the opposite concept.

For the record, contrary to people’s prejudice, Black Holes do not suck everything in.

They emit energy near the speed of light through Hawking radiation.

Then what about a White Hole? It performs the opposite action.

It shreds matter along the Z-axis and then sucks it in.

If you use this well, it can be used as a side path.

“Are you saying you know a side path?”

I nodded.

“But a side path is dangerous! If we get caught in it, the ship could be shredded. We shouldn’t underestimate a White Hole.”

The side path was similar to a plank road.

One that led narrowly along a cliff.

A single misstep would lead to a fall.

“We have a First-class Navigator, so what is there to worry about? Isn’t that right, Sojin?”

Sojin was startled by my words.

Indeed, the key to this operation was Sojin.

He had to move while finding a safe passage, like playing Minesweeper.

This task was by no means easy.

“Young Master. With all due respect, I do not know the location of the side path leading to the summit of the Bibibig White Hole.”

“You don’t have to worry about that. I know where it is.”

“The Pak family’s information network is truly amazing!”

Just then.

“Hmm? I haven’t received anything separate from the family. How do you know about it, Young Master?”

Ttaengchili expressed his doubt.

“Did you forget what my former title was?”

I couldn’t say I found out while playing a game, so I just gave a vague excuse.

“Ah! The scoundrel and playboy?!”

Only then did everyone look convinced.

They assumed that since I had wandered around drinking, I must have obtained all sorts of information.

“Still. Aren’t you being a bit too blunt?”

“Hey now. Didn’t you say it yourself before, Young Master? Scoundrel is a title, and playboy is a romance.”

“Ah! Sudongtae remembers too. You said those words while beating up a reporter. Asking how a playboy’s fist felt.”

I had nothing to say to that.

Just what kind of life did this body lead?

That was why I didn’t feel particularly guilty about possessing this body.

It wasn’t a loss for the Pak family either.

Even if I had possessed it, the DNA or Force had not changed.

Biologically, it was no different from having amnesia.

But.

‘Why does this not feel strange at all?’

After hearing those two talk, I could imagine it as vividly as if I had experienced it myself.

I might not remember, but perhaps the body did.

“By the way. That reporter I hit. Was he a cephalopod wearing red clothes?”

“Oh! You remember.”

The feeling was a bit strange.

Did Pak Yu dream of being Park Yu?

Or did Park Yu possess Pak Yu inside the game?

There were times when I felt this kind of déjà vu.

Well. It wasn’t important right now, so pass.

“Ttaengchili. Go and bring Lady Maki Blue.”

“There’s no stock of Maki Blue, sir.”

No one knew yet that Abella was from the Maki Blue family.

“Bring Lady Abella.”

“Understood, sir. It has been a while since you’ve had a drink.”

For the record, Abella was not a crew member.

She was supposed to be researching alcohol at the Ant Nest, but I had a high-speed vessel sent to bring her in a hurry.

Since Bibibig and the Lucifer Star Cluster were very close.

“Did you call for me, Master?”

Abella had served me as her Master ever since the decisive battle with Sagitta.

She swore loyalty, saying I had trusted and appointed her even though she had never shown anything.

As expected, her desire to become an official seemed great.

“Take on the role of Assistant Navigator temporarily.”

“Understood!”

Since a brewer was a great navigator.

She would greatly ease Sojin’s burden while moving through the side path.

This would raise the success rate.

“Captain. Where is our destination?”

“The Binggre Star System.”

The Binggre Star System was named because the sun’s sunspots erupted in a shape that looked like a smiling face.

Surprisingly, it used to be a tourist attraction.

Until Longros occupied the Bibibig White Hole.

What about now?

It was treated as almost a ghost star system.

If bandits moved into the back mountain, who would come to visit?

“Could it be… that the side path is located there?”

“Yes. You two should be able to sufficiently pioneer the hidden side path.”

I gave a broad smile.

Warp.

.

Warp.

.

Warp.

We arrived safely at our destination, the Binggre Star System.

The White Hole was very close, but it couldn’t be seen.

It was natural.

What the White Hole emitted was neither light nor matter.

It was only natural that it was invisible.

It shredded matter through the Z-axis, sucked it in, and then spewed out dark matter and energy.

These would flow into the nebula and be altered into a new form of dark matter.

The darkness flowing out from the White Hole was like rain that provided abundance to the universe.

“Wow. It really is smiling.”

In the distance, the Binggre star could be seen.

It looked like it was smiling at me.

Even though it changed bit by bit, it did not lose its smile.

They say that in the past, many people came to sightsee because looking at it would bring good luck.

“Moving to planet C+2.”

C+2 meant the second planet toward the sun from the center planet.

“There is no reaction from the center planet.”

My fleet numbered a whopping 1,000 ships.

We moved openly through the main road.

Even so, the station didn’t notice at all that we were passing by.

It had gone so bankrupt that it was difficult for them to even operate surveillance assets.

“How truly unfortunate.”

Abella wore a bitter expression.

I also nodded.

“Indeed. It’s quite a fun star system.”

Looking at the smiling sun naturally made me feel better.

I heard it wasn’t just the shape, but a wavelength that stimulated the Force in a pleasant way.

“Then, when you occupy Bibibig, Master, will you revive this place?”

“Of course.”

Because everything has to be packaged well to be sold at a high price.

“That’s good to hear. I would like you to build a dark water collection plant here.”

“Is it… because of the alcohol?”

“Yes. They say quite good dark water was produced here in the past.”

This must be information from the Maki Blue family.

They were a family that was serious about ingredients for alcohol.

‘From tourist products to local specialties. Was this place always this valuable?’

In the game, I had neglected it even after occupying it.

This was because I didn’t feel a reason to spend money on restoration.

Occupying this place was merely the concept of clearing out bandits.

“Oho.”

I felt good.

I could already hear the sound of land prices rising.

Once Abella got her hands on it, it would be restored in no time.

Since she was a person of extreme efficiency.

“I will leave it entirely to you, Lady Abella. Once this subjugation is over, you will be appointed as the General Manager of Development for our Star Cluster.”

After occupying the Bibibig White Hole, the Pak family would reach the level of a Star Cluster Commander.

It was by no means a small force.

“I… am I to take such a major position?”

“Because brewers are capable.”

I gave a broad smile.

The Maki Blue family was a prestigious one that produced civil servants rather than fighters.

I believed she would do well.

“Captain. We have arrived at planet C+2.”

We arrived here without any resistance.

Longros didn’t particularly care about this place either.

Since it wasn’t strategically important.

“Fleet alignment complete.”

“Warp preparation finished.”

“Good. Activate warp drive.”

A whopping 1,000 ships lined up in a long row like a train.

We entrusted ourselves to the planet’s gravity.

The energy for the warp drive filled the fusion reactor.

Countless wormhole entrances were observed in the surroundings.

Some were large, and some were small enough for only one ship to pass.

“Sojin. Please find it.”

Sha-sha-sha-shak —!

Sojin busily rolled both his eyes.

The way they moved independently was like a chameleon.

“It seems like that one. I’ll observe it a bit more.”

To be honest, I could not tell no matter how much I looked.

The number of wormholes stretching out from a single planet numbered in the tens of thousands.

Only a few of these were meaningful.

In other words, the rest were trash.

Yet, he had to distinguish the side path from those tens of thousands of trash options.

It was an incredibly high-difficulty task.

‘As expected of a First-class Navigator.’

I believed he would pull it off.

That was why I mentioned Bibibig to Humildas as a reward.

“May I verify it?”

Diana Jyot asked me.

“Oh. That’s good.”

I didn’t rely solely on the navigator’s intuition.

Since I had an excellent communications officer, we could also run the numbers.

“There is a 97% probability that it is a wormhole connected to the positive Z-axis. Interference from the White Hole is suspected in the calculated result value.”

I nodded.

With this, even the cross-verification was finished.

“Bind the entire army’s formation into one.”

“Will that… be possible?!”

It was not a size where 1,000 ships could move simultaneously.

They had to maintain their formation in a single line like this, but that wasn’t easy.

If ships got too close, repulsion would occur.

“At least it’s a short distance, so it should be fine.”

It wasn’t a complicated formation, just simply stretching them out long, so it should be possible.

“There is a risk of slipping.”

“We just need to lower the speed sufficiently.”

Unlike sea routes, wormholes allow for speed reduction.

If anything, maintaining a large formation was easier than in normal space.

“And it’s not a dangerous side path. Only about 5% loss will occur.”

Even if they were bounced out of the wormhole due to a control error, only 5% would be sucked into the White Hole.

The rest?

I did not know either. They would fall somewhere.

Still, they would be able to return somehow.

Though the process would be very grueling.

“If it’s 5%, it’s a gamble worth taking.”

In this war, the loss of the Allied fleet was close to 50%.

If we can take four star clusters for 5%, it’s a profitable business.

“Now then. Shall we go backstab Longros? Warp.”

“Command transmitted. Maintain formation for the entire army. Warp.”

Thump —!

The world began to look overlapped.

***

Marshal Humildas deployed his troops by dispersing them into the star systems surrounding Bibibig.

It was a U-shaped siege.

Since a green nebula flowed to the north, he only had to surround the southern side.

He had already released misinformation to the media.

That he would surround them widely and slowly occupy them starting from the weak spots.

“What on earth is Pak Yu thinking?”

“It’s obvious. He’s thinking of dispersing Longros’s forces to attempt a breakthrough at a single point.”

It was the standard method for attacking a White Hole zone.

“If we don’t step in, it might work at first, but it won’t be long before he’s blocked.”

“We will not move our troops as promised.”

“Then he will fail.”

“Yes. That guy needs to experience failure too. Public sentiment is flowing toward him. This is dangerous.”

Marshal Humildas curled his lips upward.

“Pak Yu, you punk. The world isn’t that easy.”

Longros was not such a fool that he would crumble from such a simple strategy.

If he were, even if he were situated within the White Hole’s sphere of influence, he wouldn’t have lasted this long with only four star clusters.

“Could it be… that he knows a side path?”

“How could he possibly? Even the locals here don’t know of any.”

He had never heard of there being a side path in the Bibibig White Hole.

Since Marshal Humildas had also put in effort to attack this place in his own way.

Even though he had spent quite a lot of money, there was no meaningful information.

“Even if a request for attack comes, do not respond. Convey this to other units as well. Tell them not to act rashly and to maintain the siege.”

“Understood! Marshal.”

He thought that if they just stayed still, Pak Yu would poke around by himself and end up in vain.