NOVEL NEXT Ch. 98
Chapter 98
Unless Kait's ears had gone bad, Derenidene definitely said it—space tuna meteor swarm. What the hell is that? He was sure he hadn't named it himself, so maybe some Earthling at the Corporation slapped that name on some creature.
Still, Derenidene had called it an astronomical phenomenon. So, does that mean the space tuna isn't a creature but a phenomenon? The questions just kept coming.
"Why that name of all things!?"
"Please ask Branch Director Nezasuriwe for the details. I had no particular involvement in the naming."
"W-Well, I guess I'll do that then."
Kait had let his emotions get the better of him, but Derenidene calmly countered. True, Derenidene wasn't the one to ask. He took a deep breath, trying to calm down.
"How rare to see you lose your composure, Captain."
"Is that so? I don't think it's that rare, though."
"Is that so?"
"Imagine it—some unknown astronomical phenomenon suddenly named 'space tuna meteor swarm' without your knowledge. Space. Tuna. Meteor swarm. You've got to be kidding me."
"It must be a very recent name. That term isn't even registered in my database. Well, it's a bit odd, but I see no issue with it."
Emotion didn't seem particularly interested. Her indifference to strange naming might stem from the fact that she didn't think much of Kait's naming sense either.
And then, Emotion pressed the attack on the unusually emotional Kait. That, too, was rare.
"It's not like you have an especially refined naming sense, Captain. I don't think you have the right to complain about someone else's."
"......Got it, Emotion."
If she was going to talk like that, Kait had a thought of his own.
He grinned and looked at Emotion's composed face.
"Then once this is all over, maybe I'll propose to the Federation Congress that we call a supernova explosion the 'Emotion Mega Rage.' Just imagine it—reports of Emotion Mega Rage erupting all across the galaxy."
"......Kyurukyurukyurukyurukyuru."
Emotion twisted her mouth and let out a series of kyuru sounds.
She must have been quite displeased. After a while of making those noises, she slumped her shoulders in defeat.
"I see. So this is what that emotion feels like. I take back what I said, Captain."
"Right?"
Emotion looked completely defeated. Understandable. If Kait actually submitted the proposal, it might really become official.
It seemed the reason for her delay was that she had tried to come up with an astronomical phenomenon to name after Kait in retaliation, but couldn't think of a good one.
"Like calling a black hole formation 'Emotion's Devouring' or something."
"Tch, if only I had thought of a good one too...!"
See? Called it.
***
Traveling through space aboard a Corporation ship was, as expected, perfectly suited to classic sci-fi fan Kait's tastes. That said, he had no mental energy to enjoy the scenery or Derenidene's explanations.
He resolved to savor it later and focused now on how to interrogate Branch Director Nezasuriwe.
Then, something that looked like a structure appeared on a section of the monitor. It was emitting light in places, so it was probably Eanipol.
"Sadly, our journey under my guidance is about to end."
"Yes. I hope there will be another opportunity."
He meant that sincerely. Honestly, Derenidene's explanations were quite engaging. Without the whole space tuna meteor swarm incident, he could've focused more on them.
Internally sighing, Kait returned a smile to Derenidene. It wasn't her fault, after all.
The outline of Eanipol gradually came into view. Kait, unusually sharp-eyed, stared at it intently.
***
"Hey, Captain Kait! Long time no see. I heard you were interested in food, so I had some prepared."
"Wonderful! Captain, Captain! Isn't this wonderful!"
"Thank you very much, Branch Director. Go ahead, Emotion. Help yourself."
Internally sighing at how quickly his partner had been bribed, Kait first thanked Branch Director Nezasuriwe. After watching Emotion dash to the table with a mix of amusement and exasperation, he turned his gaze to the massive, unicorn-like Branch Director.
Apparently unaware of Kait's bad mood, Branch Director Nezasuriwe asked if he wasn't going to eat, his round eyes now irritating.
"Space tuna meteor swarm... was it? I heard you wanted my cooperation in resolving it."
"Getting straight to business, huh, Captain? That's right. I'd like to borrow your expertise on the astronomical phenomenon known as the 'space tuna meteor swarm.'"
That's not a phrase you say with a straight face.
Aware that his cheek was twitching slightly, Kait forced himself to stay calm as he listened.
"So, um... about that name—space tuna meteor swarm..."
"Yes. It's a good name, isn't it? The Federation and the Corporation recently agreed to make it the official name. The Earthling language is becoming something of a quiet trend among us, you see."
"A... trend?"
"Oh? Surprised? It's the language of the planet you were born on, Captain Kait. Space jellyfish, space eel... A proposal was recently passed to use Earth terms for new discoveries, and suitable words from Earth's ecosystem were selected."
"I... see."
Kait dropped to his knees. To think his own words had caused such a bizarre trend in the Federation and Corporation. He had indeed called it a space eel. Who would've thought that misdeed (?) would come back to haunt him now?
But he was pretty sure he'd never publicly said space jellyfish. Wait, had he thought that before getting used to psychic power? Even if they'd read his mind, that wasn't when they started calling themselves space jellyfish.
Kait suddenly felt overwhelmingly drained, but slowly pushed himself back up. The worried look from Branch Director Nezasuriwe annoyed him.
"A-Are you okay? Maybe you're just tired."
"No... Don't mind me. I was just a little shocked at how unexpected the origin of the term 'space tuna meteor swarm' was."
"?"
Seeing Branch Director Nezasuriwe's complete lack of understanding of his inner turmoil, Kait sighed deeply—very deeply.
"Could we possibly reconsider the name 'space tuna meteor swarm'?"
"Why? Well, it's not impossible, but it would incur some cost. It's already been adopted as the official name in academic circles."
That was enough to make him dizzy. So the scholars were seriously using that term with straight faces? Space tuna meteor swarm this, space tuna meteor swarm that?
While he was busy rescuing Earthlings, this nonsense had taken root. Branch Director Nezasuriwe, misunderstanding something, pointed at the table. Seeing Emotion sitting and devouring her meal with full focus only made Kait feel worse.
"Well, eat up. You won't come up with good ideas on an empty stomach, and your mood will only get worse."
Kait's mood was already worse—because of the term space tuna meteor swarm.
Nodding slowly, he dragged his heavy feet toward the table. Watching him with concern, Branch Director Nezasuriwe suddenly let out a surprised sound.
"Either way, changing the name might be impossible."
"Huh?"
"I've heard the folks from Terapolapaneshio strongly pushed for that name. Unless you can convince them, it probably won't change."
He'd had a hunch, but of course—it was your fault, space jellyfish.
Kait held his head and sighed deeply, deeply, deeply.