"I used to think that a Constellation would always be omnipotent."
A familiar view of South Korea, familiar lights.
A beautiful peninsula that sparkled with all sorts of artificial lights even when night fell.
And the massive Hunter Association building constructed on the coast overlooking the East Sea. That was exactly as I remembered it.
Aside from that, nothing, not the restaurants I used to go to, the convenience stores, the schools was the same as before.
But the world was still fighting against the Gates with everything it had.
"Mr. Yoon Se-eum, you don't look so good."
"It's because of this world."
"This world?"
"Yes. A place that's stubbornly consistent and shows no sign of apocalypse, utterly oblivious to the mood."
It was a beautiful night view.
Since I'm the type who enjoys scenery, I would normally have been smiling brightly.
But right now, I couldn't help but wear an expression more terrible than if my Client had suddenly dropped dead.
After I groaned and cursed for a while, curious Constellations began gathering around one by one.
"I guess Hunters are starting to get old, huh?"
"Ah, please make some noise when you approach. You startled me."
"What's there to be startled about? Is this Yoon Se-eum's world of origin? If it's been maintained for over 300 years, it's quite old."
"I suppose so."
It was different from when I awakened.
Now, 'Hunter' was a dime-a-dozen profession, and unless you were in the top 1%, there wasn't much merit to it.
For the lower ranks, who didn't even make much money, risking their lives to enter Gates couldn't possibly be appealing.
Apparently, the percentage of non-Awakeners in the country was now only 15%, making them the rarer breed.
Ah, this wasn't information I had figured out myself; I was just reading the information window displayed next to me.
Another Constellation, peering at the screen from the side, laughed.
"Doesn't look like it's going to perish anytime soon. Planning to make a Client?"
"No, I need to file an inquiry first."
"Huh? Why...?"
"Because I don't understand."
If you were me, could you accept it?
That in this great age of Constellations, the internet doesn't work.
Constellations exist in a dimension above the universe where humans live.
The form of this place itself is a massive building, a structure that stretches infinitely without a first floor or a rooftop.
A place where the Client Observation System runs endlessly for Constellations who fundamentally have no need for sleep or food.
'The Star Capital.'
Including private rooms for Constellations, most of the space is composed of the Client Observation System and the devices to manage it.
Other divine beings beneath the Constellations are mobilized to maintain and repair it.
The logic is that a network spreads out from the Star Capital building to various universes, allowing us to watch worlds.
I had heard that if a world hadn't had visitors for a long time, the connection could be laggy.
However, since most worlds perished before they could become completely slow, the probability of a Constellation experiencing lag was extremely low.
And I'm the one who got hit by this ridiculously low probability, is that it?
1 day and 18 hours by Constellation Real-Time.
Of course, its flow is different from the time flow of other worlds.
Since I was used to speeds like 'Connecting... Connection Complete!', the current situation was utterly incomprehensible.
"I'm going to the Management Team."
As I shot up from my seat and started walking, the other Constellations surrounding me parted like the Red Sea.
A small humanoid Constellation with wheat-colored hair, who was at the very back, looked up at me.
"Se-eum, can I go with you...?"
"Of course, Tasha."
Tasha's face brightened immediately as she grabbed the hem of my clothes and started walking.
This child is a Constellation from a certain universe who became a Constellation long before me.
If I had to pick the most similar species in Earth terms, it would be something like a tentacle monster or an alien.
By any chance, is the universe of the first Client I chose...
Ah...! That place also has kids who look similar to u-us, but it's a different universe...
My apologies.
She was a grateful mentor who guided me well, from how to sponsor a first Client to the means of managing currency.
Some Constellations were quite offended if you assumed their birth world just because of similar appearances.
But Tasha, not content with just graciously letting it slide, willingly chose a Client in the same place and traveled that world with me.
A good friend.
She seemed to want to be close from the first day I became a Constellation.
About five years later, she even changed her appearance to a human form to appear before me.
The form of a woman with short, wheat-colored hair and red eyes was familiar, but her original True Body was fine too.
"A Constellation going to the Management Team... that's the first time in 80 years. I didn't know it would be Se-Se-eum! Because Se-eum is the type to just... quietly move on, no matter what happens."
"I was going to let it slide if it was just a minor error. But does it make sense for the internet to be slow when you're a Constellation? I come from a world that had some of the fastest internet even among Constellations."
There was no way I, coming from such a place, could accept a number like '1 day and 18 hours.'
It was like seeing a 400kb download speed when installing a 60GB game on a seven-year-old machine.
I strode forward and threw open the red door at the end of the hallway.
One of them, who had been gnawing on a deer antler while watching tens of thousands of screens, flinched and turned to look at me.
Ten pairs of eyes scanned my presence with a confused look.
"Constellations? What brings you here?"
"I came because I have something to ask."
"On the screen, there are no issues with the Constellation's device or seat, however...!"
Tasha, who had been following behind me, quietly stepped in front to block him.
I couldn't see what expression she was making, being a head shorter than me.
But judging by the employee turning pale, she must have threatened him.
I clearly said I came to ask a simple question.
I grabbed Tasha's hem, pulled her back, and approached him.
"I was trying to connect to a certain world just now, but it took 1 day and 18 hours just to connect. Is this possible? I feel like there must be some kind of error."
"Yes? Ah, that."
"...This isn't a complaint. I swear on all my Karma and my Modifier."
To think I have to make such a vow for a single inquiry.
Only after hearing the highest level of promise did the fear on the employee's face relax slightly.
He glanced at Tasha nervously before opening his mouth.
"Is the world you connected to World 34R7h?"
"Yes."
"Ah, here... this is a channel that a Constellation has connected to for the first time in 317 years. You see, connection, the more Constellations enter, the more the pathway expands. Otherwise, it shrinks."
"Yes."
His explanation was this:
Since the Star Capital's channels are different from the internet used by living beings, there is no obligation to maintain a connection point with a world that isn't being used.
A world without a Constellation's connection for a certain period gradually sees its connection shrink, eventually cutting off completely to become a 'World Line Without Constellations Until Apocalypse.'
And World 34R7h was in a state where the server had shrunk significantly in that manner.
He said if I had connected just a few decades later, it would have become an inaccessible world.
"Is there no way to expand it again?"
"It will expand naturally if many Constellations connect again, but right now, it's not even appealing enough for a single Constellation to connect."
"So you're saying I have to visit frequently and widen it even a little so other Constellations can connect..."
The employee's face quickly turned pale as he felt my voice sink gloomily.
Instead of his twenty rolling eyes, I stared at the tens of thousands of monitors.
There were countless Constellations watching worlds, not the worlds themselves.
"I apologize for not being of help."
"No. Who can I blame for my hometown being unpopular?"
I've spent much more time as a Constellation.
So I could just not care and give up.
This was a kind of stubbornness.
"I understand for now. Since it's not an error, I'll be going."
"Y-Yes...!"
As I turned my back on the room without lingering attachment and started walking, Tasha quickly picked up her pace to follow me as if she had been waiting.
"Se-eum, w-what do we do since it didn't go as you wanted? If the channel e-expands, even I will definitely connect and help so Se-eum's world doesn't get c-cut off."
"Thanks."
But the biggest problem right now is that I have to be stuck there day and night until you can connect.
I swallowed the words that rose to my throat and parted ways with Tasha.
When I returned to my seat, the Constellations had already lost interest and scattered.
Connected.
Earlier, I had to watch the screen change on its own without my will, stuck in the entrance of the world—so-called 'Waiting for Connection.'
Only now could I freely switch screens and look around comfortably.
"Let's see..."
(End of Chapter 2)
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— Translated by Prime Works —