Episode 1

The doctor’s degree had vanished.

“Excuse me, have you seen my degree by any chance?”

“Young master, it seems you have finally lost it.”

Strange. I was sure I had it just a moment ago.

The same was true for everything else. The graduation gown I was wearing, and even the plaque I received for being selected as an outstanding researcher, all gone.

“This doesn’t make sense…”

I looked around and felt my body, even slapped my cheeks.

All I could see was the bland interior of a spaceship, and all I could feel was the body of a boy dressed in normal clothes.

“Please, come to your senses now.”

A girl with navy blue bobbed hair grabbed me by the shoulder and shook it.

Ah, right.

This must be a dream; there is no other explanation.

The graduation ceremony will start soon. I have to wake up from this sleep and return to my ceremony hall as swiftly as I can. I cannot let this once-in-a-lifetime honor slip away.

“I repeat. Please come to your senses. How long do you plan to live like this?”

The girl flicked me on the forehead. I let out a yell without realizing it. It was more painful than I thought.

What is this? If this is a dream, then why does it hurt?

While I remained shocked, the girl snapped her fingers and asked.

“Do you remember me?”

“…”

“I am asking you again. Do you remember who I am?”

“… Sonia.”

I mumbled without much thought.

The girl had azure hair and white eyes.

‘Sonia’, an android maid from the space opera web novel I had binge-read recently.

“That’s comforting.”

Sonia sighed.

“Young master, you have been unconscious for a week. Do you remember doing anything wrong before you fainted?”

I shook my head.

Of course, I don’t. How could I?

The only thing I did wrong was attend the graduation ceremony and doze off for a moment.

And then, when I nodded and opened my eyes, I found myself in this world.

Wouldn’t it be normal to consider this a dream?

“You really don’t remember?”

Reality is often harsh.

“You will remember if you get hit, right?”

Sonia frowned and pulled her fist back. Instinctively, I realized this move defied all principles of robotics.

And so, without understanding why, I began to get beaten as if it were the dog days.

“Kuak! Ah, it hurts! I said it hurts!”

“Does it hurt? Sonia is hurting too!”

“Is it possible for a maid to hit her master?”

“It is possible.”

“Are you saying it’s fine for a robot to hit a person?”

“It’s fine!”

Just what!

With each hit, my head throbbed painfully, something seemed to be emerging from my mind, and I tried to remember, who is this one?

Ah, right, if it’s someone who kept Sonia as his exclusive android, it had to be that one guy.

Aidel von Reinhardt.

This third-rate scoundrel who appears in ‘Surviving Outer Gods’.

A disgrace among disgraces who lived as a playboy of the Reinhardt family, getting beaten up once by the father, once by the protagonist, and once by the transcendent beings known as Outer Gods leading to his downfall.

If the information that came to mind is correct, then I have transmigrated into the body of the most morally bankrupt human in ‘SOG’.

“Ackk! Ack!”

All that didn’t matter because each of Sonia’s punches was too painful. Even though I’ve toughened to the point of becoming numb, the fact that I don’t wake up from this dream meant that the possession did indeed happen.

Let’s think about whether the current situation made any scientific sense. For now, the urgent flames need to be put down.

“How does it feel? Remember something?”

Sonia asked, lifting her arm. I desperately nodded my head. Fortunately, she wasn’t going to hit as her fist made an arm move down to her waist.

“What did you do wrong then? Tell me.”

“I wasted… my fortune.”

“How much are you saying?”

“Not 200 trillion won… but, around 200 trillion credits.”

“And with what?”

“Gambling.”

“You have lost it.”

Sonia clicked her tongue.

“It isn’t just that. Thanks to the young master’s actions at the gambling den, the honor of the family has been compromised… ah, oh, do you remember the chaos you caused?”

“Got hit in the head by a security guard after causing a disturbance for saying the odds were poor…”

I touched the back of my head, feeling a pressure there. The rough texture of the bandage was unmistakable.

In other words, I was currently a patient with a head injury, having been beaten by a robot, no less.

“Due to this incident, the prestige of the Reinhardt family has been tarnished, and the head of the family is furious. Young master, you’ve done something irreversible this time.”

Damn it, this is so unfair. What a mess.

Suddenly, I turned my head and caught my reflection in the mirror. Reflected there was…

“…what now?”

It was me.

Not Aidel von Reinhardt, but me.

Aside from the irises, which had turned gold, symbolizing the family identification, it was just me. There was no other description of this man, so it seemed like I was the one whose face he had.

“Huh.”

Thanks to that, my confusion only deepened.

It seems like I will need some time to organize my thoughts.

Lee Jinsu, 22 years old.

Aspiring to be a university professor.

True to being a physics nerd, he only liked web novels focused on SF and then found himself thrust into this hopeless space opera universe.

There was no doubt about it.

No, even if there were doubts, there was nothing to be done.

“Ha.”

It feels like I’ve become a brain.

Honestly, what’s wrong with that?

I just read, only read things.

Isn’t it a bit too much to lock someone up in such a place just because they binge-read without even leaving a single comment?

If I had known this would happen, I would have read another paper instead of a novel.

“Young master.”

While I was lost in thought, Sonia entered.

“The head of the family will arrive soon. Please get ready.”

I knew this was coming.

Soon, I will be summoned by the father of this body.

I expected a severe reprimand for squandering the family’s wealth on gambling.

Aidel’s father is an extremely busy man. According to the story, he could have been a leading doctor in the southern part of the galaxy. I recall a description mentioning he rarely came home because he was managing numerous hospitals (which are automated) simultaneously.

And now, such a father was pausing his work to come home?

“Oh my.”

This means I am in serious trouble.

Clack!

The sound of two hulls locking together during docking could be heard.

“The head of the family seems to have returned. Prepare yourself, young master.”

“Sigh.”

I took a deep breath, once, twice, three times.

I casually threw on the first clothes I could find and followed Sonia out to the dock. There, stood a man in a white suit holding a suitcase.

Arnold von Reinhardt.

Aidel’s father and the head of the Rheinland family.

He adjusted his glasses and glared at me.

“Aidel.”

His voice was as heavy as if he were pressing down on large stones.

“You have crossed the line.”

His voice was filled with anger.

From what I could gather with my experience as a graduate, this was a situation that could explode if not handled correctly. I needed to approach with caution.

“Aidel, answer me. How did you spend 2,000 trillion without my permission?”

2,000 trillion?

If we base it on the US dollar, the gross domestic product of all the nations on earth is close to 100 trillion. The Rheinland family owns countless plants of that magnitude and, moreover, if we include the actual value of asteroids made of metals or rare elements, 2 quadrillion isn’t considered a large amount in the space age; it was all relative.

It was certainly reckless to tamper with the family’s wealth.

I remember.

How Aidel acted in the novel and to tell the truth without holding back.

“I have made this guarantee contract with the asteroid in the southwest cloud. If we lose money, we will foreclose on it for an equivalent amount,”

Even I thought it was trashy.

As expected, Arnold’s face turned red and purple.

“You want to die?”

“I have committed a sin worthy of death.”

I bowed my head as if I wanted to be buried in the ground.

“You have squandered the fortune of the family, which we had to accumulate over generations, and even tarnished our honor. Do you understand what this means?”

“I do, under the intensity of it.”

Deeper, deeper, and deeper I bowed my head. It wasn’t my fault, but I still had to bow.

Endure it. If only this can be endured, then what comes next is set.

After that, Arnold’s voice grew louder and louder, calling me a mad guy, unfilial son, someone not worth killing, and more. But I had to just listen to those words.

“I made a mistake.”

Each time, I said the same thing.

“Is apologizing all you can do?”

“I made a mistake.”

I cannot bring myself to say it is my responsibility; it would be too unfair to even say something like that.

Above all, saying I will be responsible is like saying I will pay it back.

With my abilities, it is impossible to earn such a large sum in a short period of time. In fact, even the head of the family, Arnold, couldn’t do it. That is why he’s punishing me as if he wants to kill me.

But, there was a fortunate aspect.

It was that Aidel was more trash than I could have imagined.

He’s the type who insults his own parents as if it is his daily task. He would never admit to being wrong, even if killed.

“You… know you did something wrong.”

Seeing such a kid bow and beg earnestly must have been shocking for Arnold.

“Enough. Talking will only dry my mouth.”

After venting everything he wanted to, my father’s voice went quiet, his eyes as empty as those of a retail investor caught in a market crash.

“I cannot stand the sight of you; head back.”

“Do not leave, but stay away.”

It seems I’ve narrowly avoided the worst-case scenario of being expelled from the family.

In the future, I must avoid being expelled from the family at all costs. If not, Aidel will end up tormented by Outer Gods and turn into a cold corpse. Remember, the genre of the novel is Cosmic Horror.

Just when I thought I could breathe a sigh of relief and walk away after the bow…

“Wait.”

Arnold stopped me.

“I will give you a choice.”

“Uh?”

“I will specifically give you a chance to make amends for this mistake. Listen carefully and choose one of the three.”

Did I hear that wrong?

From the novel’s description, it isn’t a situation where Arnold is ever lenient with Aidel.

Well, I couldn’t pass up the chance given, so I nodded eagerly, pretending to be hopeful.

Arnold spread out three fingers and said,

“First, retrieve the money you lost through gambling, but you cannot dispense.”

An impossible task.

“Second, enlist in the military.”

I’d rather die, though.

Arnold’s suggestion to enlist meant joining as a private and not an officer.

And this place is a world without dreams or hope, waging war against monsters created by Outer Gods; the second option was essentially telling me to die for honor.

I gulped at this.

“Lastly, third, enroll in Stellarium within this year.”

The moment I heard that option,

“Ah.”

I involuntarily pursed my lips.

“If you cannot do any of these three, pack your bags and leave the house. And do not ever get involved with the matters of the Reinhardt family. Do you understand?”

“I understand.”

I bowed and turned around.

Enrolling in Stellarium, huh.

It was originally my plan, but for my father to bring up this topic was as good as a windfall.

Returning to my room, I had a smile on my lips.

“…enough.”

“What do you mean?”

Sonia asked with a sullen look.

“I need to enroll in Stellarium.”

“The Stellarium Academy, you mean? That school is renowned across the galaxy for admitting only the most talented.”

“I know. So what?”

“Why do you think the head of the family would forgive you on the condition of heading into school?”

It was so obvious.

First, because it is a very prestigious institution in the universe, where just being admitted guarantees a successful life.

And the second reason is…

“… because he thinks the young master will not pass the entrance test at any cost.”

Sonia gently revealed the truth. No, to be precise, she was revealing it to Aidel.

I wasn’t angry.

After all, Aidel was someone who had nothing to do with studying.

So much so that the academy he entered after being expelled was in the outskirts, and he got in through a donation admission.

He probably wanted to have a college diploma since he had no backing. Of course, he caused trouble there too, got beaten by the protagonist, and got expelled.

I nodded and said,

“I know he set this unreasonable condition on purpose.”

“Still, will you do it, young master?”

“Yes, I have to. At any cost.”

“Is it possible?”

Sonia asked, her lips twisting into a bitter smile that held both arrogance and contempt, as if to say, ‘someone like you?’.

In a typical thug-like life, the exclusive butler or maid characters blindly trust the protagonist.

Sonia isn’t like that, so I thought there was a bit of realism to it.

Anyway, my answer was clear.

“Of course.”

This world will soon end.

Because of beings from higher dimensions known as Outer Gods.

I didn’t want to die here. And so, after possessing this body, I spent the last couple of days organizing my thoughts and making plans.

The ultimate goal of that plan is to develop the ‘Graviton Bullet,’ the final means to counter the Outer Gods.

The Outer Gods manifest in this universe by using black holes as gates, and the novel mentions that by using Graviton Bullets to expel them, destruction can be averted.

It wasn’t certain, but since I am not the protagonist, that was all I could do.

In any case, I have to research the same thing in this world too.

For that, first…

“…graduate from school.”

“Uh?”

“I plan to graduate from school.”

Upon hearing the answer, Sonia’s face turned blank.