[Chapter 1]
Diet food that burned calories in an instant without the need to exercise.
An automatic shower device that would wash someone in 3 seconds with the press of a button.
Pill that could substitute as a meal.
Household androids that did the cleaning, laundry and meal preparation in one's stead.
Things that everyone had imagined at least once.
If such things existed, people would line up to open their wallets in an instant. Therefore, it was inevitable to think that such convenient features could not possibly exist.
After all, those were things that only appeared in one's imagination.
Science Fiction.
Just as such words implied, it was a topic of fantastical science.
However, humans always longed for what they could not have. A tale as old as human history itself.
And the young man, boasting refined movements over the computer keyboard as if playing a piano, was no exception.
"No, I keep telling you! Whether it's the Heavenly Demon or Dragons, a single shot of an antiparticle cannon sends them to oblivion! Why can't you understand a single thing I say!!"
Antiparticle weapons utilized the dual annihilation of matter and antimatter. Theoretically, an antiparticle weapon that had a 100% mass-to-energy conversion rate could yield a power tens, hundreds of times that of nuclear weapons.
How could mere fantasy or martial arts novels even compare to SF?!
He fervently typed on the keyboard to enlighten his opponent's ignorance. He tirelessly preached the greatness of SF technology. And of course, harsh words were sprinkled here and there. After all, he had been in a keyboard battle for over 12 hours now.
"Huhu. Ran out of things to say, huh?"
The counterarguments of his opponent began to slow. Sweet, sweet victory seemed to be within sight.
"Just give up already."
He was fairly tired himself. Moreover, it was late. Watching a SF movie and then hitting the bed sounded absolutely perfect.
Flash-
At least it would have been if he hadn't suddenly been transmigrated.
"Eh?"
What in the… Transmigration?
There was no precursor. It took some time for him to regain consciousness and assess the situation.
'Ah….'
After a few days, he realized he had been transmigrated into a novel he had read several times before: [Chronicles of the Galactic Heroes].
'CGH', written in the form of a tetralogy unlike typical web novels, was a place where countless heroes and strange fates entangled. Fortunately, he was well-versed in the novel's content and was young enough to be ambitious.
"Alright! I'll definitely prove it! The greatness of SF!"
However, his ambitious resolve was broken not long after.
In this insane worldview, where a single shot from a giant space battleship could destroy an entire planet, he was merely a low-ranking officer. Basically, fodder.
He realized that survival was his primary concern; why would proving himself matter if he wasn't alive to do so?
'How…daunting.'
Now matter how hard he tried, a single ill-fated battle could annihilate the planet he was standing on.
The terror and futility he felt was difficult to even imagine. Whatever effort he made, whatever growth he had, if luck was against him, he could face a death more meaningless than an ant being crushed under military boots.
He had to completely revise his plan. Initially, he aimed to monopolize all the opportunities he knew of and become a powerhouse that could aim for cosmic hegemony. However, risking his life in battles of the cosmic scale was not an option to him.
He first obtained the Artificial Intelligence Module with the ultimate operation capability, which had only appeared as a MacGuffin in the novel. The utility of this SF worldview's best AI, 'Aria', needed no saying. Then, he implanted the AI 'Aria' Module in his body, thus accelerating his plans.
[A/N- In fiction, a MacGuffin is an object, device, or event that is necessary to the plot and the motivation of the characters, but insignificant, unimportant, or irrelevant in itself. The term was originated by Angus MacPhail for film, adopted by Alfred Hitchcock, and later extended to a similar device in other fiction.]
He decided to switch from being a combatant to a politician. Starting from the Committee of Frontier Planets, he built his position. Though it was only a measly amount, it was much easier because he had the Emperor's bloodline.
As such, in an ironic twist, the thing he focused on the most inside this SF web novel was not actually the fantastical science, but 'people'.
He sought out the main and supporting characters of CGH one by one. With AI Aria's help, he instigated situations in advance and stole their hearts.
-W-Why would you… for someone like me…?
-You'll be friends with me…?
-I will serve you loyally.
-This grace… I will never forget it!
A genius on a cosmic scale.
Can you even begin to imagine? The magnitude of talent that even Aria's auxiliary computations could not predict?
To be the greatest in the entire universe when even a title such as the Greatest Continental Genius would make one's hand and feets tremble under the pressure and ecstasy?
No more needed to be said.
He collected all kinds of talents and geniuses that showed excellence on a cosmic scale. He especially paid attention to the protagonist of Part 2, Cosmic Sword Saint Maxien, and the middle boss of Part 4, Battlefield Conductor Camilla. He obtained the strongest individual powerhouse and the maestro of fleet battles. There was nothing to fear.
Even with the strongest weapons in hand, he did not stop collecting talents. All the while he preemptively dealt with various crises and collected fateful opportunities, thus spreading it among them.
What followed next was obvious. He slew the final mastermind, the Emperor of the Empire, and ascended to the throne as the supreme ruler of the cosmos.
The Emperor of the Galactic Empire.
To be more specific, he became the First Seat of the Human Alliance, one of the three superpowers dividing the universe.
Although the position of Emperor had a more symbolic meaning, there was still no doubt that he was an omnipotent ruler. After all, various talents actively working in practical affairs were no different from his limbs, making him the sovereign in both name and reality.
Having ascended to humanity's highest position, he delegated the rest of his work to 'Aria' and his subordinates. After all, he hadn't climbed his way to the throne to work himself to the bone.
Then, one day, as he enjoyed his temporary freedom, a strange message appeared before him.
『[Welcome to the Integrated Dimensional Community.]』
Huh?
An unexpected message.
What was fascinating to him was not the hologram or the interface that only the user could see. After all, wasn't it a given for such mere things to be implemented in an SF worldview?
However, for him, who was assisted by AI Aria, to be approached out of the blue like some kind of spam mail was impossible. Moreover, since he had completed a perfect body modification, allowing him to live forever, it was out of the question for him to see hallucinations.
"Is Aria playing a prank?"
-What seems to be the problem?
Immediately after, a female voice was transmitted directly into his mind.
"Um…."
Aria's personality was like that of a cold and haughty secretary; it was hard to imagine her playing such pranks.
"Aria, have you checked the message that's currently appearing before my eyes?"
-...Please wait a moment.
A hologram message that Aria couldn't perceive and was visible only to his eyes?
That was impossible.
"Hm…."
Could it be…?
On one hand, a sense of anticipation grew within him. He had been leading quite a dull routine since becoming Emperor.
"…."
-It cannot be checked even through shared vision. Please do not joke around.
"Really?"
'A message that even Aria can't see, is it….'
He cocked his head and touched the message that could be seen only to him.
Ding-!
『[Please enter a nickname to use in the Integrated Dimensional Community.]』
He set a nickname in his mind.
『[Setting up DNP(Dimension Network Protocol)…]』
『[DNP Address(1.241.38.66) confirmed. Identification Code assigned.]』
『[Welcome once again, 'Cosmic Emperor'.]』
Right before his eyes, an interface similar to internet communities from his previous life was created as a translucent window. Simultaneously, Aria's bewildered voice was heard.
-Master. An unknown astral signal has just been detected! This is… impossible.
How long had it been since Aria was flustered? Almost never since witnessing the ultimate technique of Maxien, the Cosmic Sword Saint.
"Aria, synchronize."
-Please wait a moment. 3, 2, 1…. Synchronization complete.
He could perceive himself standing blankly in third person, as if going through an out-of-body experience. At the moment, Aria was the one controlling his body. Synchronization went beyond merely interpreting brain signals to share vision.
'Synchronization always feels weird, no matter how many times I go through it, huh.'
The sensation, as if only his soul had been separated, could not exactly be called pleasant. Regardless, Aria, synchronized with his body, blinked and checked the translucent window.
-This is….
Could it be seen through Synchronization?
Aria couldn't even speak.
Was it that shocking?
However, the words that came out of Aria's mouth were different from his expectations.
-This is… a gathering of psychopaths.
Aria's absurd remark made him inwardly nod in agreement.
[Meanwhile in the Apocalypse… Agricultural Log Day 123] [12]
[A/N- [12] numbers represent how many comments there are to the post!]
[500 Reasons Why Martial Arts Are Stronger Than Magic] [325]
[I'm] [0]
[Posting] [1]
[i wanna kill every single one of those pointy-eared motherfuckers] [46]
[NSFW] [144]
[A] [0]
[someone's strutting around with dual swords again… so fucking annoying.] [30]
[stopwiththeregressionsstopwiththeregressionsstopwiththeregressionsstopwiththeregressionsstopwiththeregressions] [2]
[Heinous] [12]
[Stop the Rogue Hate!] [124]
[Annihilating filthy humans is the shit] [24]
[Picture] [67]
[A/N- "I'm posting a heinous picture": A famous meme in korean internet forums: they basically are saying "Here comes something disgusting!" and posts a picture that is considered heinous in their respective "subreddit". So, as an example, it's like saying you would put 10 million mastery points in Teemo. Or saying you think Lebron James is the GOAT to a bunch of middle-aged men.]
[images of correcting my tsundere cat by walking her nude] [44]
[StepOnMeMommy:DemonKing'sPrecariousShoulderStrap.jpg] [642]
It seemed even artificial intelligence could not gaslight itself to perceive the Integrated Dimensional Community as normal.
He disconnected Aria's Synchronization and returned to his body to browse the posts.
'Mm…. This is no different from the communities in my previous life.'
After skimming through the posts, he got a rough idea of how it worked. It had simple features where one could choose between anonymity or a nickname to post and comment. However, what intrigued him was that the users seemed to live in various different worlds.
『└ah… i got transmigrated into a fantasy but there's no flush toilet…are you kidding me?』
『└fuck u think toilets are the only things missing? im in a martial arts novel and they have neither brain nor decency. mfers….』
『└fucking hell isnt it worse to have a toilet but not be able to use it? damn apocalypse.』
『└But still, at least that's something. Here, civilization is nonexistent. We only wear leather around our waists and run around barefoot….』
『└only leather around the waist? slurp』
『└I am a man.』
『└fck off』
Mm… Did some of them transmigrate into the Stone Age or something? It seemed there were people living in unimaginably primitive conditions.
『└Hoho. Obsessing over material wealth leads one away from the path of the heart.』
『└gramps. have u ever eaten chicken? if u havent then stop talking. ur not worth talking to.』
『└Chicken? Is that not called a chicken dish that has been fried? If you are talking about such a dish, then I have had it. But have you truly lived that deprived of a life? To the point that you are obsessed with such a dish?』
『└how dare you speak about our Lord and Savior, the Almighty Chicken, in that way?』
『└hey gramps, what about cola?』
『└Cola? What is that?』
『└mm…im gonna omit that explanation.』
『└I do not understand this obsession with food. When you go out into the fields and mountains, there are precious foods of nature that fill both your stomach and heart.』
Moreover, it wasn't just users who had regressed, reincarnated, or transmigrated. Occasionally, there were figures that seemed like natives to their home world as well.
Feeling intrigued, he gently pressed the button.
'Shall we start with something light?'
『-Title: noob here, title says it all』
Shortly after, the no-lifers drooling over this noob prey started writing comments.
---------------------------------------------
[A/N: Read on ethiclearners.com and get early access every wednesday and saturday]