Original subtitles

Two enemy pirate ships have gone dark.

Three ships remaining!

Roger that. Hiro, let's finish this quickly.

Sure. Try not to bite your tongues, now.

They've all gone dark.

Nice work, Mr. Hiro!

You too, Mimi.

Elma, salvage what you can.

Aye-aye, sir.

I hope we find something good.

Yeah. We're gonna need a whole lot more money...

if we want that planetside family home.

Reborn as a Space Mercenary: I Woke Up Piloting the Strongest Starship!

First Space Colony Visit

Five more minutes... No, make it ten.

Even if I go into the office,

I'll just be performing "network management" by removing viruses.

Let me have this.

Why's it so cold?

What?

What?

What?

What?!

What's the current temperature?

That'll kill me. Activate life support!

Nice and toasty.

Wait, actually...

What am I doing here?

Oh, I see. This is Stella Online,

a game set in space with a high degree of freedom as its selling point.

You can go on adventures, trade, or become a mercenary.

The ASX-08 Krishna...

This ship is the Krishna, huh?

Well, after racking up about three thousand hours of play,

I guess I've even started dreaming about the game.

I might as well enjoy it.

I don't seem to be waking up yet.

All right. Daddy's gonna test the weapons systems, too!

Deploy heavy pulse lasers!

Fire! Or something like that.

That was wild.

And I can't keep lying to myself.

This isn't a dream.

It's reality.

Now that I know that, I might as well think positively.

I've entered the world of Stella Online... or so I think.

Then can't I live freely like I did in the game?

I mean, why not?

It's a hundred times better than doing network management in the real world.

Okay, I'm getting excited.

I just have to ignore all my concerns.

If I'm here, I might as well enjoy it!

First things first. Where am I?

I hope there's a colony nearby.

Wow.

Think positively. Fortunately, I have food and water.

No soda, though.

But I did find something wild.

Why are there so many rare metals in there?

Krishna, do you know?

Not like you'd answer me.

In Stella Online, rare metals could be exchanged for cold, hard cash anywhere.

They're convenient, but the catch is that transporting loads of them

drastically increases your odds of encountering space pirate NPCs.

Oh? A ship of unknown affiliation is scanning me.

That didn't take long.

No, wait.

They could be a kindly third party who goes around helping ships in distress...

Hey, brother. Were you napping out here?

Nope, they're an unkindly third party.

I'm not doing anything. Don't mind me.

C'mon, man. Think how lucky we were to find each other in this great big void.

They kept space in their cargo holds instead of loading up with weapons.

Is that for collecting trophies? In that case...

We don't wanna rob you blind.

If you'd just share a bit of your cargo...

Hey, is this you?

Hand over your cargo, and we won't kill you.

Sounds like I was right.

People can't live without money.

If they're threatening to take mine, I'll have to defend myself.

You don't wanna die, do you?

I don't, so I'm fighting back.

I'll probably end up killing you guys, but no hard feelings.

He's so fast!

We can't catch up!

Is that idiot trying to fight us?

His ship transformed?

Scatter!

Huh?

Just one shot?

I-I'm not doing this!

Screw this!

Hey, get back here!

No! I don't want to die!

I don't want to—

Still want to fight?

I... I'll kill you!

Quit scurrying around.

N-No way.

Don't! Stay away! Stay away!

Mommy!

That was some reckless flying.

My guts are churning.

But if that didn't wake me up, then this really isn't a dream.

Think positively.

Now for the fun part.

Deploy salvage drones.

Oh?

A system map, huh? Lucky me.

Now I just request permission to dock...

This is the Tarmein Prime Port Administration Bureau.

We've received your request to dock at our colony.

Uh, captain? I'm sorry, but your name is corrupted in our data.

Huh?

Oh, uh...

My ship's name is Krishna. My name is...

I don't want to use my legal name.

I guess I'll go with my in-game name.

It's Hiro. I'm Captain Hiro, a mercenary.

Reborn as a Space Mercenary: I Woke Up Piloting the Strongest Starship!

Permission granted. Welcome, Captain Hiro.

Reborn as a Space Mercenary: I Woke Up Piloting the Strongest Starship!

And that's how Captain Hiro's great space adventure began!

Yeah, right. In my dreams.

So, where did you get all these rare metals?

I took most of them from pirates I destroyed.

That's the third time you've asked me that.

Of course they're suspicious of an unaffiliated,

self-proclaimed mercenary hauling a ton of rare metals.

It's important to carry identification.

You really can't tell us where you got them?

Could we end this fruitless exchange?

Am I supposed to give him a bribe?

She's pretty.

And a little scary.

L-Lady Serena! What brings you here?

I saw a ship I didn't recognize.

Is it his?

Yes, ma'am.

That's a lot of rare metals.

They weren't obtained illegally, I trust?

I swear they weren't.

Are you with the mercenary guild?

I came to register with them.

I heard you destroyed some wanted pirates.

I even acquired what might be coordinates to their home base.

I planned to turn them over when I collected my reward, but this guy...

So there's no proof his cargo is stolen?

Well, no, but...

Then there's no problem.

We're always in need of more rare metals.

We should be grateful he's choosing to sell to us.

But...

Do you have something to say to the daughter of Marquess Holz?

Wow, she's a bona fide noble.

I-I'll begin processing his cargo right away.

I hope we haven't offended you.

It's fine. I know I'm suspicious.

Indeed, we have practically no information about you.

It's like you came from another universe.

In some ways, she's right.

How did you end up at Tarmein?

I had an accident during hyperdrive.

Because of that, my memory's hazy.

To be honest, I'm at a loss.

You're suspected of being a Belbellum Federation spy.

The Bellubellu Federation?

Yes, the Belbellum Federation.

I see.

An unidentified, self-proclaimed mercenary

brought rare metals of unknown origin on an unaffiliated ship

and knocked on your front door.

Bit obvious for a spy, don't you think?

I couldn't agree more.

If I were that spy's boss, I'd summon him

and smack him after reading his proposal.

What a coincidence. So would I.

She's cute when she smiles.

I'll speak with security.

Please collect your reward and hand over your data cache.

Thank you.

You're interesting.

I hope you'll be there when we exterminate the pirates.

She was pretty, but it's best not to get involved.

That completes your request.

Could you review this?

Sure thing.

That's 2,500,000 ener for the rare metal.

All together, it comes to 2,669,000 ener.

Could I ask you something?

Yes. How can I help?

A single day's worth of food costs 15 ener,

water is 12 ener, and lodging is 150 ener.

If I don't splurge, that's 177 ener a day.

I could live here for 40 years.

It's not quite enough to retire, but it does ease my mind.

I've been through a lot, but I need a break.

If I go to sleep now, will I wake up from this dream?

Well, that didn't happen.

I'm currently in the Tarmein System.

Rich with natural resources, it sees a lot of merchant and mining vessels.

That also attracts space pirates,

so there's no shortage of mercenary work, but...

Border skirmishes with the unfriendly neighboring nation

are becoming more frequent.

Apparently.

Maybe that officer's here because of that.

I don't want to get involved with the military.

I should skedaddle to another star system.

But Stella Online didn't have a Grakkan Empire or Belbellum Federation.

I guess it's a bit different from the game.

But...

I gotta say, this is an impressive sight.

Hi, newbie.

Nice gun.

Well, well, well.

I don't think I've ever seen anyone so beautiful.

Silver hair and pointed ears. She looks like an... elf?

A space elf?

They jammed fantasy elements into what I thought was sci-fi.

Not bad, Stella Online-esque whatever-this-is.

What? You're staring.

Who wouldn't be on their guard when suddenly approached by a stranger?

It's common sense.

That's true.

I'm Elma. As you can see, I'm a mercenary.

What are you looking at?

The pitiful breasts you proudly shoved in my face. What about it?

Don't give me that crap!

You're one daring newbie.

Why are you calling me "newbie"?

Only mercenaries carry those.

On top of that, you were gawking at the colony.

You obviously just got here, so you're a newbie.

You're smart, disappointing space elf.

What'd you just call me?

Nothing.

So, what do you want from me?

Nothing. I'm just killing time.

Hey.

System security's on the move.

Something's clearly up, so I'm waiting.

Now I'm messing with you to pass the time.

I hope you'll be there when we exterminate the pirates.

I see. Her chest and personality may be disappointing,

but she's got the nose of a mercenary.

If you've got time to kill, show me around town.

I'd like to buy some food.

What? There's no decent drink to be found here.

I said food.

I've got drinks on my ship.

How's that for showing me around?

Fine. You have a deal.

So, what's your name?

It's Hiro.

Hiro, huh? Pretty simple.

So is yours.

Mine's got an extra syllable.

True.

Welcome to the Tarmein Prime mercenary guild.

You're a newbie and unlicensed?

For registration, use windows one through five.

You should be getting registered before getting food.

For combat reports and rewards, use windows six through fifteen.

Oh, right. Sorry.

I brought some fresh blood.

Welcome.

Hey, bud. Just enter your ship name and ID here.

Where's your ship from? Never seen it before.

Oh, uh...

No criminal record.

It's not stolen, is it?

Why, of course not!

Good enough for me. No more questions.

Also, speak casually, or people will think you're a sucker.

Uh, sure.

Okay, next comes the test.

What test?

We can't give you work if we don't know what you can do.

True.

Do your best, newbie.

Y-You pass.

Who the hell are you, anyway?

Did you serve in the military somewhere?

Why d'you ask?

Listen, buddy. Your score makes you gold rank.

That's not something a newbie could do.

Gold?

Your mercenary rank.

Gold's just below platinum.

It's second from the top.

Sounds like I did well.

But I can't make you gold right away.

You haven't achieved anything yet.

I get it.

For now, I'll register you as bronze.

You'll probably be promoted to silver before long.

Bronze. Got it.

So, what is the great veteran Elma doing over there?

Five years.

What?

I've spent five years trying to reach silver.

I really put my foot in it, huh?

Regardless of my rank, you're the veteran here.

I'd still be unlicensed without you—

a shit stain who couldn't even buy food.

I have you to thank for everything, Elma.

Really?

As long as you know your place.

Too easy.

Come on. Let's go buy that food.

Aye-aye, ma'am.

So, what're you looking for?

Meat. That, and carbonated beverages.

Carbonated what?

What is that?

What?

They're drinks infused with carbon dioxide to make them fizzy.

I've never heard of those.

You what?

N-No!

Please stop!

Quit resisting.

Don't.

The strong prey on the weak.

It's an everyday occurrence here.

If you stick your nose in every time, you'll never see the end.

So I'm supposed to ignore it?

You're just some guy with a ship.

You weren't even a proper mercenary until a minute ago.

You're not the hero of some story.

True.

No!

Let go!

Someone help!

This is normal here, huh?

That's right.

My hands are full living my own life.

I can't afford to look out for anyone else.

Did you really think I'd say that, you cold-blooded, disappointing elf?

Hey.

Mimi the Girl