Chapter 24: Dimensional Store (1)

༺ Dimensional Store (1) ༻

***

For several days, the Awakened of Gangnam Shelter, grimy with blood and stains from non-stop battling, were staring blankly into the sky with their mouths agape.

From the sky, red beams were lashing down. Not just that—thousands of missiles, trailing grey smoke, were bombarding the ground.

Thousands of meteors fell along with the beams.

Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Bang!

And it didn’t stop there; a blue sphere generated around ‘it’ flew in an arc and precisely struck an Evolved Entity.

Fizzzzz- Boom-

‘Growly’, known for its steel-like defenses, was reduced to ashes in an instant, and where the red beam passed, only a black line remained, emitting a pungent smell.

Ah….

A massive sphere was coalescing at the front of ‘it’.

Merely by coalescing, it annihilated nearby clouds and pushed away the atmosphere, generating strong winds.

Goosebumps rose on skin.

Wooooong-

The atmosphere screamed.

If that falls, doesn’t that spell the end of this place?

Such a thought naturally occurred.

Eventually…

When the coalescence of the sphere seemed to freeze time…

Whether it were the zombies void of reason…

The Evolved Entities that commanded them…

Ordinary people…

Or the Awakened…

Everyone looked up at the sky without exception.

Ah….

The sun is falling.

The world is ending.

A dazzling light covered the entire sky as the world melted away.

Flash-

Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Bang!

With a loud noise, the shockwave spread like a sonic boom. The ground flipped, and buildings crumbled like sandcastles.

“EUAAAAAH!”

“EUHEUK!”

“RUN!!”

Everyone ducked and covered their heads. It was instinct—a subconscious action to preserve life.

However…

After a brief moment, everyone realized.

H-…How are we still alive?

Did we live?

That they were without a scratch, perfectly intact.

Huff.

Heup.

Haaaa….

A sigh of relief naturally flowed out. Soon, they realized it wasn’t just luck that they had survived.

Woooong-

At the epicenter of the explosion, a hexagonal blue force field had formed, expanding into a massive dome. It was likely this that had allowed them to survive the aftermath.

“Impossible.”

Someone’s empty voice rang out, but no one responded.

They must have all done drugs. If it wasn’t that, there was no other explanation for what they were seeing.

​

Within the force field’s dome, the world seemed destroyed as black lightning struck, and corpses and ashes floated in the air as if gravity didn’t exist, converging towards the center.

At the epicenter of the explosion, a black vortex was slowly absorbing everything.

I-Impossible…

​

People looked up to see a Dreadnought Battleship floating majestically above the shelter.

​

The disaster that had only resulted in despair after the shelter’s collective efforts had ended in an instant.

Below the massive battleship, a pile of Stage 6 Giant Evolved Entities, which even S-Class Awakened had failed to scratch, lay decapitated without having offered any semblance of resistance.

No more zombies were in sight.

***

[The collection of Power Source necessary for the installation of the Dimensional Relay has been completed.]

“Huh? What’s that?”

[Would you like to install the Dimensional Relay? Y/Y]

“Huh? There’s only ‘Yes’….”

[Rejection will be rejected.]

Youngsik gave up thinking any further.

In the end, he had to disembark from Hyperion, which was busy with the installation of the Dimensional Relay or whatever it was.

It wasn’t necessary to use a ladder like before. Since he descended on a flying saucer, many people looked up at him.

“It’s kinda scary….”

As everyone was gaping with their eyes wide open, it made sense to feel that way. Still, he wasn’t worried.

[You are a Grade 1 Protected Individual. The corresponding protection program will be activated.]

And when he reached the ground, he realized that such worries were meaningless.

After all, instead of contempt and disregard, he could easily tell that he was being looked at with awe and fear.

And above all, Yu Byungtae couldn’t even make eye contact with him.

***

Yu Byungtae saw the back of Kim Youngsik being welcomed by the residents of the shelter.

“….”

He felt hollow. He had been struggling for the past few days, barely sleeping, and often fighting with the shelter’s executives. The ranges of arguments spanned from why didn’t they prepare earlier to why did he ignore Kim Youngsik’s warnings about the Wave, to why did he had to go out of way to expel him.

Just a few days ago, they were rubbing their hands in appeasement, flattering him with all they had. And yet, the audacity to turn on him now. Didn’t they also say the theory of the Wave was absurd? Didn’t they agree that the bastard was just causing discord and harming their unity?

Was it because of the executives’ hostile atmosphere?

Everything in the shelter was going awry.

In contrast, that guy had sorted out the situation in less than ten minutes.

How did that even make sense?

Yu Byungtae felt relieved to have survived, but at the same time, a sticky emotion was simmering within him.

It was always like this when involved with that guy.

That gaze brimming with some odd certainty, as if he knew all the answers. How dare he? How could a nobody like him know about anything when even Future Foresight Ability Users could not surpass 30% accuracy?

Yet, after everything concluded, things had always flowed according to Kim Youngsik’s will. Even though Yu Byungtae was the rightful leader of the shelter.

He could no longer tolerate further division.

So, he had expelled him, before he became a greater threat.

Look no further than now. Didn’t the residents of the shelter gaze at him as if he was a savior?

Gnash.

“Why are you getting so angry again?”

A woman in a seductive outfit approached him; it was Baek Seulgi, that punk’s ex-girlfriend.

To think she would wear such clothes, even during such a time.

She was deplorable. It must be that the satisfaction of having stolen that bastard’s girl had blinded him. Just hearing Baek Seulgi’s usual whining felt like his hair would fall out right this second.

“Where are you going?”

“Where else? Over there, obviously.”

Kim Youngsik was receiving cheers from the people. Byungtae’s brow twitched. Meanwhile, Baek Seulgi smirked, her expression full of confidence.

“What are you even going to do there?”

“Just say hello, that’s all.”

It was impossible for Byungtae to miss the ever so persistent greed and desire in her eyes.

“You….”

How could he not know how she was truly like? A tiresome woman, always trying to flirt with and seduce any decently powerful male Awakened.

He eventually closed his mouth in resignation.

Yu Byungtae watched from a distance as Baek Seulgi was coldly ignored by Youngsik, at a loss for whether he should be pleased or upset.

***

A research lab within the depths of planet Terra, the capital of the Galactic Empire.

Two men, who looked as though they hadn’t washed in a long time, were smiling at each other.

It was the moment the installation of the Hyperion’s Dimensional Relay was completed.

“It seems the relay has finally been installed.”

An Astral Signal was amplified through an antimatter passageway constructed from data, extending into numerous dimensions.

They sighed in relief upon confirming this.

“Let’s toast.”

Minister Makia and Vice Minister Calen, who had been unable to sleep properly while executing the Emperor’s commands, lightly clinked their wine glasses.

Clink-

“Phew….”

“You’ve worked hard.”

They gently swirled the red wine in their glasses before taking a sip.

“Haaa….”

“It tastes splendid.”

It was a top-quality wine, a limited edition of only 1000 bottles produced as a commemoration for Emperor Karlstein Babylon’s coronation ceremony. This wine was unobtainable even for them, who possessed wealth among the top 0.1% of the Empire. As such, calling it merely ‘top-quality’ would be an understatement.

Just a single sip spread a delightful aroma through their bodies, bringing ecstasy. The aftertaste stimulated all five senses, then smoothly vanished, leaving no residue but a lingering pleasant memory.

It was the very definition of a heavenly taste.

“Not many in the Empire have savored this wine, I’m sure.”

“Of course. After all, it is a reward given only to those who execute special orders.”

“Vice Minister Calen. Honestly, I find our accomplishment even sweeter than the taste of this wine.”

Both of their faces were full of a sense of achievement.

“I feel the same. Not just anyone can handle the task of constructing data into antimatter, after all.”

They were looking at the same screen.

“Hoho. It seems we can finally get some rest.”

“I know, right? I, too, haven’t slept in the confines of my own home for a long ti-”

Calen paused mid-sentence. It was because a decree from Emperor Karlstein had arrived simultaneously for both of them.

“….”

“….”

[Grade 1 Decree]

-Construct a system for accessing a store for high-end products through the Metaverse.

-Set the modeling of the store owner as the Galactic Empire’s idol, ‘New Sserafim’.

-Develop a system that utilizes future point accrual and various promotions.

…(Omitted)

-In any case, as soon as possible.

“….”

“What exactly does His Majesty want?”

“W-Who knows….”

“It is impossible to fathom His Majesty’s intentions, I guess.”

“…Yes.”

It seemed their all-nighters would continue for a while.

***

[The Dimensional Store Open Beta Service has started.]

​

The following message appeared for users of the Integrated Dimensional Community.

​

ㄴis it up?

ㄴHAS IT RELEASED YETTTTTTTTT!!

ㄴLOL i thought i was gonna piss my pants while waiting

ㄴwhat the? nothing showed up for me tho?

ㄴyeah, okay, you ain’t chosen^^

ㄴfuck me is this also only usable if selected?

ㄴi just got in smoothly tho?

ㄴ(This comment has been deleted.)

ㄴit says it’s an OBT LMAOOO looks like they dont have enough servers lololol

ㄴthe fuck… it’s not like it’s a game or something so why is it open beta?

ㄴagh im getting PTSD. raise ur hand if u transmigrated after participating in an open beta

ㄴ2222

ㄴ333333

ㄴ444

ㄴfucking hell. test, my ass…. more like a test of my patience

ㄴa never-ending test… what the fuck…

ㄴmy before was… fuck me LMAOOOO everyone else transmigrated as hunks or beauties, but I…. where the fuck did save scumming go

ㄴHEY SOMEONE POST A REVIEW!! IM FUCKING DYING HERE OF CURIOSITY!!

ㄴMom, I want to be an Oradge when I grow up Mom, I want to be an Oradge when I grow up Mom, I want to be an Oradge when I grow up Mom, I want to be an Oradge when I grow up Mom, I want to be an Oradge when I grow up

ㄴ(This comment has been deleted.)

ㄴLMAOOO even now the bluadge be working her ass off sheeeesh

Amidst everyone’s anticipation, the Dimensional Store commenced its operations.

/genesisforsaken